Loser's Log: The Legends
by Zokolov
Summary: COMPLETE! Deconstructing the weirdness of the Pokémon games and common fanfiction. The first part of a not-so-epic trilogy where a complete idiot somehow shuffles through the earth-shattering events of the Pokémon world. A screwy supporting cast promised.
1. The Prologue

_**LOSER'S LOG - THE LEGENDS**_

_Author's Notes: For the record, there will be no more author notes after this, because they kinda distract from the story, and I don't think I need to explain stuff after every chapter. The story can speak for itself. What to expect? Well, the first chapter is just a prologue, and the story begins properly from the second chapter. Unexpected twists, bizarre events, legendary Pokémon, wacky characters, lots of surreal and dark humor and whathaveyou will follow. Especially the whathaveyou. Comedy or not, there will be drama as well to balance it out. Due to my love for weird fiction, the story itself will take a turn for the weird as well. I have made a conscious attempt to be different than conventional fanfics and make this story long and enjoyable. And of course, there are the sequels..._

_While chapters 2-8 may feature a hapless loser shuffling his way through the crucial plot events, in chapter 9, we are introduced to a different kind of protagonist, so even those who are tired of idiotic main characters can find comfort in the fact that in chapter 9, we'll meet Kris. Bitter, cynical, lonely and ambitious, Kris will become the main character's foil, and will have her own stories to balance it out. _

_Hope you enjoy this ride! _

_**...**_

**Chapter One: **_**Prologue**_

The police investigators were puzzled. Three corpses in the middle of nowhere isn't something that you see every day in Sinnoh, but this was a slightly more obscure case. The corpses could as well be sleeping, as there were no external signs of violence. Of course, they won't figure out the cause of death before the autopsy, but it was still weird.

The deaths happened at Route 224, a beautiful seaside route in the northeast corner of the Sinnoh region. It was not easily accessible, as it's connected to mainland Sinnoh by the dangerous and complex cave called Victory Road. Because of this, people didn't come there often and the landscape was dominated by large flocks of Pokémon, including Wingull and Pelipper flying around and numerous Bellsprout in the bushes.

Looker, the investigator from International Police, enjoyed the silence. He was hesitant to leave Route 224, knowing that he would have to get back to work soon. But he couldn't enjoy the view for long: something broke the silence. It was the sound of a car, speeding towards Looker and the police officers. Looker only had a second to realize that the driver wasn't going to stop, so he had to dodge as the car stopped only an inch away from the large white rock Looker was sitting on.

Two men stepped out of the car. The driver was Eusine, a young, reckless millionaire dressed in flashy clothing, looking vaguely like a magician. Accompanying Eusine was Morty, the gym leader of the Ecruteak City Gym and an expert on Ghost-type Pokémon. They were called to the crime scene due to their alleged expertise on legendary Pokémon.

Looker jumped out from behind the white rock and went over to greet Eusine and Morty. Before Looker could say anything, however, Eusine immediately started talking:

"How are you doing, sport? Great? Great! Listen, I'm Eusine, and this is my associate, Morty."

"Uh, nice to meet you…" Looker said. "Are you the legendary Pokémon experts?"

"Well, _**I **_am anyway" Eusine said with an arrogant smirk on his face. "Morty's just here to back me up, eh?"

"Yeah. Whatever" Morty said, and before Eusine could interrupt, started talking to Looker: "So is it true that Suicune was sighted here?"

"That's what the witnesses claim. There were many of them, apparently there was a group of hikers here, who… well, you can listen to them yourselves. Follow me."

Looker and Morty started walking towards the three hikers arguing with a policeman, while Eusine made sure to lock his sports car so everyone could see it. After he caught up with Looker and Morty, Looker started talking:

"So, uh… what do you guys do, exactly?"

"We're members of the Legendary Society. It's a… well, I can't tell you much about it, but bizarre events and crimes relating to legendary Pokémon are our field of expertise." Morty replied.

"Hey, check this out, guys!" Eusine shouted. "I can use this tiny little button to open the doors of my car! Awesome!"

Looker and Morty took some distance to Eusine and Looker leaned closer to Morty.

"And, uh… what's the deal with him?" Looker asked.

"Well…" Morty said, contemplating on what to answer. "Let's just say he's a guy with too much money and too much time on his hands. For some reason, he seems to be really into legendary Pokémon. We let him join because he donated us a lot of money and his car has been useful. But besides that, he's more of a nuisance."

"Why did you bring him along, then?"

"He seems to have an unhealthy interest on Suicune. When he heard about Suicune's involvement to this case, he immediately wanted to come along."

"So, what's with the outfit?" Looker asked, looking at Eusine's purple suit, white cape and red bowtie.

"I don't know. I think he looks just fine." Morty said, and from his tone, Looker understood not to continue the conversation.

As Looker, Morty and Eusine arrived to the three hikers, they heard one of them yelling out incoherent phrases at the policeman. Looker told the policeman to go, and then introduced Morty and Eusine to the hikers.

"Gentlemen, thank you for your patience. These two… researches would like to talk to you."

"Hi, I'm agent Johnson!" Eusine said. "And this is agent, uh… Johnson. No relation"

"Nice aliases, man. Real covert and all." Morty whispered.

"Ssh!" Eusine snapped and continued talking to the hikers. "Now, agent Looker here has told me that you claimed to see Suicune running this way."

"We sure as hell did!" said one of the hikers. "Damn thing was running towards this route like a blue lightning or something, an' I recognized it immediately, from the book I own. I can't read or nothing, but my cousin here is real smart. Real educated, like!"

"Really?" Eusine said, now talking to the other hiker. "How educated are you?"

"Hell, I graduated high school! I'm the thinker of our family!" the hiker replied.

"Indeed. So you, in all seriousness, claim that Suicune killed these people?"

"Yeah, that's right, fancy clothes!" the first hiker said. "We followed it here to catch it for dinner, and all of the sudden these people were here, barely breathing. We tried to resuscitate 'em, but none of us wanted to kiss a guy, so we gave up! So, after having lunch and grabbin' a few beers, we called the police!"

"You did the right thing…eventually" Eusine said. "You may go."

"Wait, shouldn't we take them to the station or something?" Looker asked.

"No need!" Eusine said. "I'm running this investigation now, and I think it's obvious that these people have just some mental handicap or something. Probably the result of their years of inbreeding or something. Pokémon don't kill people."

"It wouldn't be the first time!" Morty said.

"I'm telling you, even though it may _seem_ that Suicune did this, there's got to be something… something else…"

So, with this abrupt sentence, Eusine simply walked away. Morty shrugged and followed suit, promising Looker to help in the investigation. Looker decided to return to the bodies.

"OK, let's get these out of here…" he said. "Oh come on, guys, stop playing with the corpses!"


	2. The best is yet to come

**KANTO**

**Chapter Two: _The Best is Yet to Come_**

Captain's Log: June 4th: "_Well, dearest reader. You're now going to experience the thrilling ride of my life, with full story and pics. While I started my diary by calling myself "Captain", you may address me as Commodore, Oberleutnant, Chief or Premier, whatever you like. After a painstaking five-year period of my life, I have finally graduated the Viridian City Trainer's School at the humble age of 24. However, unlike your average snot-nosed teen, I'm not interested in becoming a Pokémon Trainer, but-"_

"Put down that book, Stephens!" the professor said. "And pay attention. You only have this one course left. Concentrate!"

"Yes, sir!"

"_Uh… I seem to have lost track of my thoughts, so I'll begin again. My name is Silas 'Shane' Stephens, a graduate student at the Viridian Trainer's School. But my ambitions are far higher than becoming the janitor of some gym in the middle of nowhere. I am writing this to tell you, my dear reader, that I have begun a search for legendary Pokémon all over the region of Kanto. For years I have been fascinated by them, but I have been unable to begin my quest. My fascist teacher, Professor McFleetwood has kept me locked in the same classroom for years, claiming that I have no proper motivation for this. What a chump!"_

Silas 'Shane' Stephens had always lived in Viridian City. While he had so far remained as a polite and humble citizen (still living with his parents), he had yet to be noticed by anyone else in town. In the eyes of many, he was considered a "nerd", and to be honest, that he was, a thoroughly unpleasant one of the not-so-smart variety. Silas had dedicated his life for the study of legendary Pokémon, but his parents feel that he may have aimed too high: he had yet to have seen a legendary Pokémon despite trying to do so for ten years. Not only that, but he had never even trained a Pokémon before. Due to this, he was looking quite forward on receiving his first Pokémon, which would be given to him by the Lavender Volunteer Pokémon House.

June 7th: "_My Pokémon has not arrived yet. While I feel that I don't need any protection for my upcoming journey, my parents and my best (and currently, only) friend Ferguson have insisted that I need a Pokémon to protect me from the many harms of the real world. As if I'm going to encounter them! I'm a big boy, aren't I? Once I even walked to the Poké Mart and back home - all by myself!"_

But after a long wait, his Pokémon was finally delivered to him - in a Poké Ball, a tennis ball-sized container where a Trainer can store their Pokémon when unable to carry them with him. Naturally, the rather slow-witted and naïve Shane was shocked by the size of the Ball.

"Wow, that's my Pokémon?" he said. "It's awfully small…"

"What? No, it's inside the ball!" said Ferguson, a local Pokémon Breeder and Daycare owner, an acquaintance of Shane's parents. "Don't worry, it's completely safe inside. Just press that button to release it."

"But… what if it attacks me?"

"Rest assured, you won't be needing that baseball bat. Put it down, Shane, and see what you got."

"Can't you tell me what I got?"

"No, dumbass. It's supposed to be a surprise. Open it up!"

Shane carefully grabbed the Poké Ball and released the Pokémon from inside it. After a red flash of light, the Pokémon was standing in front of Shane and Ferguson. Ferguson immediately recognized it as Sandshrew, a mouse-like Pokémon the size of an armadillo, and possessing a similar, hard and dry skin as well.

"Wow, you got a good one!" Ferguson said.

"Yeah…" Shane sighed. "It's all right, I guess. It doesn't have huge fangs or cannons sticking out of it's back. So it's not dangerous for me, but…"

"What's the matter?"

"I mean, are you sure this thing can protect me? It even seems to be afraid of our loud talking."

"Of course it's a little timid at first. It was abandoned by it's previous owner. That's why it was a bargain. Only actual Trainers get their Pokémon for free, so you'll either have to capture your own or buy one. But Sandshrew is a great Pokémon. It's completely immune to electrical shocks!"

"Wow, that's cool!" Shane said, this time without having to feign interest. "How does it do that?"

"It's a Ground-type Pokémon" Ferguson said.

"Yeah, but how is it immune to electricity?"

"It… look, shouldn't you be on your way by now?"

"Oh, yeah. Thanks for the reminder. Legendary Pokémon, here I come!"

And with that, Silas 'Shane' Stephens left Viridian City. Ferguson watched him walk for a few minutes. After reminding Shane which way is north, Ferguson left back home. Besides him and Shane's parents, no one else seemed to know (or care) that Shane Stephens had left.

The next town over, north from Viridian City, was Pewter City, but to get there, Shane would have to go through Viridian Forest, a dark maze filled with bug Pokémon. Sandshrew was not much of a help either. Shane preferred to keep it outside it's Poké Ball, but if anything, Sandshrew was more keen on remaining inside the ball. Sandshrew seemed to be scared of every person they came across and every miniscule sound they heard from the forest.

"All right, you little sissy, you" said Shane with a slightly condescending tone. "Back into the Poké Ball with you, then. Good thing I'm not afraid of any creepy sounds."

June 9th: "_After getting lost in Viridian Forest after being completely convinced that the bogey man was after me and running in circles and screaming for help, I finally settled down and decided to set camp. I forgot to pack any sleeping bags or stuff like that, since a large portion of my pack is dominated by my clipbook and this diary. So, I grabbed an old blanket and wrapped it around me. No cold is going to get the best of me!"_

After sleeping for about three hours, Shane woke up when he heard the sound of leaves rustling near him.

"Sandshrew?" he muttered. "Is that you - OH MY GOD!"

Shane flinched and immediately jumped away from the sound. It took him a while to realize that the sound was actually caused by a small Pokémon that even Shane could identify: Weedle, a small but poisonous caterpillar-like Pokémon.

"Oh, it's just a Weedle. Shoo! Leave me alone!"

Despite Shane's usually calm demeanor, he couldn't stand being woken up, so he kicked the Weedle away without mercy. Without any further thought, Shane was going to get back to sleep, when he heard a buzzing sound nearby. After turning around, Shane was horrified by the sight: dozens, if not hundreds of Beedrill (the adult form of Weedle, resembling enormous wasps) flying towards him.

Unable of thinking a clever one-liner, Shane decided to grab his pack and Sandshrew's Poké Ball, then ran away like crazy. Shane kept running and running, but the Beedrill got closer and closer. All of the sudden, a thunderbolt out of nowhere struck the Beedrill flock, causing them to turn back and run away.

It took Shane a moment to realize what happened. He then started to look for the entity that saved him, but was unable to see anything, until he spotted it: a small, blue Pokémon that he had sometimes seen in pictures: the incredibly rare Dratini had apparently used Thunderbolt to scare off the Beedrill. Realizing that chances such as these didn't come often, Shane grabbed an empty Poké Ball and decided to capture it. Shane wasn't a complete rookie (after all, he got a C- from his Pokémon Catching-class), so he knew that in order to capture the Dratini, he had to weaken it first. So, he summoned Sandshrew out of it's Poké Ball. Sandshrew was sleeping peacefully, so Shane had to wake it up.

"All right, Shrew! This is it. Our first battle together. Now, I wasn't awake during Battle classes, but I think I know the basics. Strike Dratini with… er… Scratch!"

Sandshrew nodded in agreement and charged towards Dratini, preparing to scratch it with it's sharp claws - only to be knocked by by Dratini's Water Gun-attack.

"Oh… so Ground-types hate water… fascinating…"

"What's going on here?"

The sound came from the bushes, and Shane was surprised to see a man with red hair, dressed in a dark-colored clothing and a black cape approaching him.

"You! What are you doing to my Dratini?" the man asked.

"Your Dratini?" Shane said, being honestly surprised by this. "I was wondering why there was a Dratini in Viridian Forest. Sorry."

"Well, you should be" the man said. "Dratini heard those Beedrill coming after you and saved you ass, and now you're trying to steal it from me?"

"No, no, no!" Shane said, unnerved by the man's intimidating behavior. "I honestly thought it was wild. I'm not a thief, I'm just a wanderer. A nomad or something like that. My name is Shane Stephens, I just came here from Viridian City. I just started my 'journey' or whatever that is."

"Well, I guess I can believe that" the man said. "My name is Lance, by the way."

"Lance, eh…" Shane said. "I think I know you from somewhere. Aren't you that guy who made the Statue of Liberty disappear? I think I've seen you on TV…"

"You're mistaken, friend" Lance said. "I'm the Pokémon League Champion. I have had the title for about two and a half years. Before that, I was the leader of the Elite Four. Oh, and I'm also an agent of the International Police."

"Well, we all have to do something…"

"I can see that you are not so easily impressed" Lance said, slightly irritated by Shane. "I'm also a member of this society. See?"

Lance took a badge out of his pocket and showed it to Shane. It resembled a police badge, but it was completely black and had the letters 'LS' written on it in yellow.

"LS…" Shane pondered. "Lesbian Stuntmen?"

"Not quite. It stands for 'Legendary Society', shortened for 'Legendary Pokémon Society'. For years know, we-"

"Hold on!" Shane said, now filled with interest. "You're saying that you're a member of a society that researches legendary Pokémon. A society that does all sorts of cool stuff, like making sure bad guys don't use legendary Pokémon when trying to take over the world and stuff?"

"We also get a 30% discount when riding the Magnet Train" Lance said.

"Can I join? I know I'm not very experienced, but-"

"You already answered your own question, Shane" Lance said. "But in case you missed it, here it comes again: no. You can't join us. You have to be an experienced and skilled trainer to join our society."

"What? That's an outrage!"

"Relax, Shane. You'll have a chance to prove yourself. Maybe one day, you'll have what it takes to join us. But for the time being, you may not join."

"That sucks. I'm lost in this dark forest, I can't join a secret society, my a Pokémon is a total coward and I can't think of anything else to complain about!"

"What do you mean 'lost'?" Lance asked. "If you're heading towards Pewter City, it's that way. You see that relatively large sign over there which says 'Pewter City: This Way', pointing towards north?"

"Oh yeah!" Shane said. "Thanks!"

With the help of this relatively convenient sign, Shane continued his journey towards Pewter City. It didn't even take long for him to reach Pewter City, which he imagined to be a blooming metropolis filled with good-looking girls and would-be admirers of his adventures. The truth was different, however, as Pewter City was mostly a gray, medium-sized city which served as a rest stop for trainers advancing to more interesting cities, like Cerulean, Celadon, Saffron and Vermilion. This bummed Shane down a bit, but it didn't crush his spirit. Now that he was in Pewter City, he decided to enjoy himself, so he went to a local man, asking if there was anything interesting happening in town. The only man he saw near him was a grouchy-looking, middle-aged man, spraying something in his garden.

"Ahoy there, my friend!" Shane signaled him.

"What, what the hell do you want?" the man shouted, apparently grouchy for being distracted.

"Hey, sorry. It's just I'm new in town, and-"

"What? Do you expect a parade or something? I'm busy here. I'm spraying this repel-stuff at my garden to keep Pokémon away from it. Those damn Caterpie are always crawling in here, eating my carrots."

"What's the matter with you?" Shane asked. "I thought NPC's were supposed to be friendly!"

"What?"

"Ah, never mind. You just keep on doing… whatever it is you're doing. I wasn't really paying attention, so… bye!"

Leaving the man alone, Shane decided to head towards the Pokémon Center. Even though his loyal Shrew had only been in one battle while in his ownership, it was already exhausted. Shane dropped the Sandshrew off to the less-than-friendly receptionist at the Pokémon Center, and decided to hang around, waiting for Shrew to rest up. While looking around, he noticed another young man, quite like him. Dark-haired, wearing dirty clothes and carrying a birdcage with two Poké Balls inside it. The man was having a heated argument with another receptionist lady, who seemed to casually ignore the bird keeper.

"Please, miss, you don't understand" the bird keeper said. "You have held my Pokémon here for three days, I need them to challenge the Gym!"

"Just look at me, kiddo!" the receptionist retorted. "I work in a Pokémon Center. Does it look like I care about your Pokémon?"

"Well, it's your job, isn't it?"

"Smartass. Like I've already told you, you didn't come back to pick your Pokémon at the right time-"

"That's because the Center was closed!"

"Don't give me that! Anyway, now your Pokémon are being held by us until you pay the penalty fee. Three dollars!"

"Yes, but like I said, I don't have three dollars!"

While listening to this strange argument, Shane went through his wallet. In the middle of the lint, receipts and candy wrappers, he found some coins. Feeling sympathetic for the bird keeper, Shane decided to help him out.

"Hey, guy! I have 1,80" Shane said while walking towards the bird keeper. "I'll help you cover the charges."

"Wow, thanks, man!" the bird keeper said. "I'm Timmy, by the way."

As Shane and Timmy handed the grumpy receptionist her money, the receptionist gave Timmy two Poké Balls.

"Wow, you have _two_ Pokémon!" Shane said, sincerely impressed by this. "I'm, uh… Will. Will Power!"

"Really? It kinda looks like your name is Silas Stephens, also called 'Shane'."

"How did you know that?"

"It's written on your pack. '_PROPERTY OF SILAS 'SHANE' STEPHENS, PLEASE REFRAIN FROM STEALING_'."

"Oh, you… saw that. Well, anyway… see you later!"

As Shane was about to walk away from this embarrassing person, Timmy began following him. When Shane got his Sandshrew back and turned around, he was startled to see Timmy standing behind him, as if he didn't hear the 'see you later!'-part.

"So, you're new in town, huh?" Timmy said, and before Shane could answer, Timmy continued: "I live here. Just started my Pokémon Trainer-quest. I was in Viridian Forest, training my Pokémon, and they got injured, so I had to come back here to heal them. Now I'm thinking of heading to the local Gym, but they only open the doors at noon, so-"

"Listen, Timmy" Shane said, stopping this flow of noise. "While you're waiting for the Gym to open… is there anything fun to do around here?"

"Fun? Oh, you bet!" Timmy said, rather enthusiastically. "Come on, I'll show you!"

Shane followed Timmy, as they walked past various, grey and dull-looking houses in Pewter City. There were very few people moving outside. After walking for a few moments, Shane and Timmy arrived to their destination: The Pewter Museum of Science.

"A museum?" Shane sniggered. "Oh, that's fun all right. Capital F."

"Oh, there are some really interesting things here. Besides, I have two tickets."

"OK, I'll come. If the other ticket is for me, that is."

Shane and Timmy walked around the museum, and while Timmy expressed lots of interest towards pieces of rocks and Pokémon skeletons, Shane wasn't too interested. While he was slightly impressed by the large Aerodactyl-skeleton hanging from the ceiling, the museum was a disappointment to him. In the second floor, however, there was one object of interest: an extremely large rock that supposedly came from outer space. The text below the rock implies that it's a 'Moon Stone' which Pokémon used to travel to Earth from outer space. While Shane had a hard time believing this nonsense, another person at the museum seemed to be fascinated by this. Probably some UFO-wackjob, as Shane thought to himself.

"Hey, friend!" Shane said, slamming the back of the person watching the Moon Stone quite closely. "The truth is out there, right?"

"Huh? Oh yes, _si_. I… uh… must go now. I left the kettle on…"

Shane only caught a brief glimpse of the man as he ran away: he was dressed in all-black clothing, had an unshaven face and a large moustache and carried around a bag with a dollar sign on it.

"Probably late for his sci-fi convention, or something…" Shane muttered to himself.

After Timmy spent enough time browsing through the museum and Shane made an unsuccessful attempt to hit on the cashier lady, the duo left towards the Pewter City Gym. It was noon already, but Pewter City wasn't any livelier.

"Hey, Tommy" Shane said. "I was just wondering… how did you know I was new in town before? Do you have some weird powers or something?"

"I'm Timmy" the bird keeper replied. "And no, I don't have any powers. At all. But I'm sure I would have seen you around before if you were a citizen of Pewter."

"Hey, it's a big town" Shane said.

"The hell it is" Timmy said. "I haven't seen more than a few dozen people here. Besides, everyone looks the same. It's a nightmare. I can hardly get up in the morning…"

"There's another thing that is bothering me" Shane wondered, without listening to Timmy at all. "How come no one is getting out from their houses, and the people I meet are all rude, or in your case, weird?"

"I have wondered that myself. This place used to be a bit livelier, but people are moving out of the city, fast. I hear that they're planning on closing down the Pewter City Museum. Then we'll lose our only attraction, and people will only come to this town to challenge the gym. It's also pretty hard to get here, because you'll either have to go through the Viridian Forest, Mt. Moon or Diglett's Cave. The main reason probably is that some group of criminals is operating nearby, effectively preventing anyone from coming through Mt. Moon. That's got to bum people out."

As Timmy kept on talking, Shane wondered to himself if the Weedle he encountered in Viridian Forest were edible. Finally, Timmy and Shane arrived to the Pewter Gym. Timmy decided to challenge the gym leader, but Shane was less keen on the idea, considering that he never had a battle before. Timmy reminded Shane, however, that Shane would need at least one badge to make his Pokémon obey him and be respectable. So, Shane decided to challenge the leader as well.

As soon as the gatekeeper let Timmy and Shane in the gym, Timmy walked melodramatically towards the gym leader, Brock, a young man specialized in Rock-type Pokémon, who apparently had a disease which made his eyes look like that they were constantly closed.

"All right, gym leader. I am Timmy from Pewter City. I've come to challenge you, and-"

"Could we get this over with?" Brock said, in a rather calm, cold manner. "I need to go to the dentist after this. Two Pokémon each, OK?"

"Oh… sure…"

After pondering on what to do, Timmy grabbed a Poké Ball and threw it to the arena: he was going to use his Pidgey. To retort, Brock used his Geodude. The battle seemed to end rather quickly when Geodude's Mega Punch severely injured Pidgey, but Timmy wasn't born yesterday. He told Pidgey to use Mud-Slap, spilling mud on Geodude's eyes. Timmy then told his Pidgey to use Whirlwind, knocking Geodude to the gym wall, knocking it out.

"Ha haa!" Timmy exclaimed. "Take that, Brock! Good job, Pidgey!"

Brock, rather unaffected by this, called Geodude back, and prepared to send out his next Pokémon. Shane, excited on what it would be, grabbed his Poké Ball too and released Sandshrew from it.

"All right, Shrew" Shane said to the little Pokémon. "Keep your eyes peeled. You're going to be up against this next one."

Shane and Sandshrew watched intently as Brock grabbed a Poké Ball and used his next Pokémon: Onix, a gigantic snake with a body made out of rocks. As it roar filled the gym, Sandshrew instantly cowered behind a rock and Shane was quite intimidated by the Onix as well. Apparently, Timmy was too, but he tried to hide it, and ordered Pidgey to use Mud-Slap. But before Pidgey could do anything, Brock ordered Onix to use Slam. By using its rock-hard tail, Onix blasted Pidgey to the floor, knocking it out instantly. Shocked by this, Timmy recalled Pidgey and used his next Pokémon: Spearow.

"OK, S-spearow!" Timmy stuttered. "Use… Use, eh… eh… Oh, use Leer!"

"Onix!" Brock commanded. "Use Tackle!"

Timmy's Spearow barely hand time to look at Onix, before the rocky snake charged at the bird, knocking it out as well. Timmy had lost the battle. As he recalled Spearow, he then turned towards Shane.

"OK, Shane. You're up next- What the…"

Timmy could just barely catch of a glimpse of Shane and Sandshrew running away in a distance.


	3. Stereotypes for the win!

**Chapter Three: **_**Stereotypes for the win**_

June 10th: "_My quest to meet the so-called legendary Pokémon continues. At this point, I feel appropriate to explain what a 'legendary' Pokémon is, in case there's one or two amongst you 'readers' who don't know it yet. A legendary Pokémon is a one-of-a-kind, extremely powerful Pokémon with powers compared to that of the forces of nature. Unlike other Pokémon, there only exists one or two 'legendary' Pokémon and they are rarely seen by people. For me, the legendary Pokémon feel like a good way to compensate my overall crummy life."_

"_Recently, I've ventured through Pewter City. After heroically running away from battle and ditching the only person who actually was friendly towards me, I now find myself at Route 3, heading towards Mt. Moon, a large mountain separating Pewter City and Cerulean City, with a network of tunnels dug inside it. As badly as my trip has gone so far, I have a feeling that - OUCH!"_

The last word was written accidentally by Shane. As he kept looking at his diary while walking along the road, he was bound to bump into someone, and now he did. Both Shane and the person he crashed into fell to the ground, and the person who Shane crashed into wasn't too happy about that:

"Ow! Watch where you're going, you dweeb!"

"Well, for your information, lady!" Shane said, recognizing the high tone of the voice. "You could have just gone around me, and… you see… I…"

Shane's words faded away as Shane actually saw who he bumped into: it was a girl. She had long, brown hair almost down to her waist and she was wearing a short, red skirt, a light blue top and a white hat. Since Shane had troubles communicating to people in general, he had no chances of communicating with a good-looking woman. As such, his only option was to stare.

"Excuse me? My face is up here!"

"What? Who's talking?" Shane blurted, before finally coming to his senses. "I mean, excuse me, miss. I must have been too focused on my… research. Please, forgive me for my blunder."

"Well, it's OK…" the girl said, rather confused about Shane's behavior. "It was only an accident, don't worry about it. I'm Leaf!"

"What? Oh, right… My name is, uh… Grant. Grant Power."

"But your real name is?" Leaf asked with an amused look on her face.

"Uh… Shane. Shane Stephens. It's nice to… well, you know…"

"Nice to meet you too" Leaf said. "Are you a Pokémon Trainer also?"

"No, not really…" Shane said, while trying to avoid looking directly at Leaf. "I'm more of a… private researcher…"

"So, what are you researching on?"

"Legendary Pokémon, mostly."Shane said this with a hint of pride, expecting to get some sort of 'WOW'-reaction from Leaf, but instead, she just smiled.

"Yeah, I'm sure you are" Leaf said while rolling her eyes.

Not knowing what else to say, Shane tried to steer the conversation to more safer tracks.

"So… you were coming from Mt. Moon?" he asked.

"Well, I'm from Pewter City" Leaf said. "I tried to get to Cerulean, but some goons have set up a roadblock in the middle of the tunnels, so I'm heading back to Pewter. If you're going towards Cerulean, you're going to have to take the long way. Not to say that you would get yourself lost, but from the looks of you… you're going to get yourself lost".

Shane was slightly offended by this jab, and moreover, he was confused whether Leaf was serious or was she perhaps teasing him. Or maybe she wanted to prevent Shane from going anywhere so he could escort her to Pewter… In any case, there was only one way of breaking the ice.

"Listen…" Shane said, after a lengthy pause, but Leaf interrupted him immediately.

"Look, I'm sure you're a nice guy and all, and I'd like to get to know you" she said, and since Shane still failed to realize what she was saying, she continued: "But I'm just not looking for a relationship right now. Besides, entering the Pokémon League is taking all my time."

"Oh" Shane said, but surprisingly, he wasn't disappointed by this. Partly due to the fact that he was rather experienced in terms of rejection, but also because he felt that this girl was nice - someone one could hang out and be friends with, but go out with? Nah. Leaf seemed to notice this awkward silence caused by Shane thinking to himself, and decided to speak up:

"Anyway, I'm sure you're in a rush…"

"No, I'm not!" Shane shouted, slightly scaring Leaf. "I mean, no big hurry… What do you say… we have a friendly Pokémon battle, right here, right now?"

"I thought you'd never ask" Leaf grinned, and took out a Poké Ball.

Shane was prepared. This was going to be his first actual battle, and he already knew what he was going to use - seeing as he had no other choice. Shane launched Sandshrew into battle, while Leaf used her Vulpix, an elegant, fox-like, fire-breathing Pokémon. After briefly memorizing what attacks Sandshrew knew and how to battle in general, Shane ordered Sandshrew to use Scratch, but Vulpix was too quick and dodged the attack. In turn, Leaf told Vulpix to use Flamethrower. Shane was prepared for this, telling Sandshrew to use Defense Curl, causing Sandshrew to curl up to a ball, deflecting the fiery attack. After that, Shane memorized one other attack: Rollout. To do that, Sandshrew remained curled up, and stroke at Vulpix with immense speed, rendering it unable to dodge. After repeating Rollout a few times and looking out for Vulpix's Quick Attacks, Shane did it: he won his first match.

"Woohoo!" he yelled in triumph. "We did it, Shrew! Thanks!"

Even Sandshrew was rather surprised for its triumph, and was quite happy about it. Leaf recalled Vulpix, but apparently, had no hard feelings despite her loss. Quite amused, she watched as Shane bounced around, proclaiming his triumph.

"I did it! I won! Finally, after so much hard work… What? Well, I did some hard work too. Oh, shut up, Shrew!"

"Your first victory, was it?" Leaf asked.

"How did you know?"

"Women's intuition. So, I really got to get to Pewter City. But I'll see you later. After the roadblock is cleared, I think I'm heading to Celadon City."

"Hey, what do you know" Shane said. "I'm going there too. I think. Wherever it is."

"Great! I'll see you there!"

Shane, rather happy because of his encounter with this dame and due to his first victory, continued his journey towards Mt. Moon. After a long walk, he arrived to the entrance to the mountain. As he is who is, he didn't realize that something was wrong - there were no people to be seen despite the Pokémon Center nearby. The cave itself was lit with numerous lamps, something which usually doesn't happen either.

Before he entered the cave, however, he saw someone exiting the Pokémon Center nearby. Shane could immediately recognize the cape and the hair: it was Lance.

"Hey! Lance! Over here!"

Lance was visibly displeased to see Shane, but couldn't go anywhere as Shane walked to him.

"Oh, hello there, you…" Lance said, while struggling to remember Shane's name.

"I'm Shane, also known as Silas Stephens" Shane said. "You remember me. What are you doing here?"

"Well, actually, I was just about to leave…" Lance said, and grabbed a Poké Ball from his belt. "It was nice talking to you, whoever you are. Oh, and keep an eye out for Team Rocket."

"The football team?" Shane asked.

"No. It's a nefarious criminal organization, quite akin to the mafia, or the Yakuza. You know, which had terrorized Kanto two and a half years ago before their leader vanished and now they're up to mischief again. Who steal , exploit and kill Pokémon for profit. _That_ Team Rocket!"

"Doesn't ring a bell" Shane said. "But thanks for the warning. I'll keep an eye out."

Lance was visibly annoyed by this, but didn't give it a second thought, and threw his Poké Ball to the ground. As it opened, an enormous, orange dragon Pokémon appeared, spreading its wings.

"All right, Dragonite" Lance said. "Let's head back home!"

"Dude… you have a Dragonite?" Shane gasped. "I've only seen one in pictures…"

"Well, there's always a first time. See you later, Sam."

"It's Shane."

"Yeah, whatever, Sam. OK, Dragonite, let's go!"

Lance's Dragonite rocketed to the sky, leaving a cloud of dust behind, and Shane could only watch in awe as the Dragonite was merely a small dot on the sky.

Sandshrew wasn't too happy on going inside Mt. Moon, so it decided to crawl into Shane's pack. Shane himself was too scared to notice this, mainly because he had always been frightened by caves. After walking and walking some more, he finally encountered what he had been told: an obviously man-made roadblock, which was basically just a large pile of boulders blocking the tunnel leading towards Cerulean. Next to it was a sign, but it was too riddled with smudges and spelling errors that Shane couldn't read it. Instead, he decided to take Leaf's advice and go to the other direction, which would surely lead to Cerulean City.

After walking for a seemingly endless moment, Shane decided that he'd need more than one cowardly Pokémon if he was going to survive in the wilderness. Shane took Shrew from his pack and explained it the situation. It was hesitant to move around in Mt. Moon, but Shane had already spotted a good target: a Geodude apparently sleeping under the rock.

"Spotted one!" Shane said. "OK, Shrew, hit him with a Sand-Attack!"

Sandshrew did as said, but it didn't have any effect on Geodude's rock-had body. So, the rock Pokémon lunged into the air and hit Shrew with a Tackle that knocked Sandshrew out instantly.

"Shrew! What's the matter with you?"

But there was no point. The Geodude left, and Sandshrew was apparently ashamed of it's defeat. Shane couldn't feel any more annoyance towards this cute critter. After all, it was his Pokémon.

"Oh, relax, stupid" Shane smiled. "There's no point in worrying about that defeat. We'll do better next time!"

"The hell you will!"

The voice Shane just heard belonged to a man observing him from a distance. He looked like he was the complete opposite of Shane: he had smart and clean clothing, his face was clean-shaven and his hair wasn't totally messy. The man seemed to have some sort of undefined confidence in him as he glared down on Shane. His defining feature, however, was his voice. His single word sounded unnecessary loud and taunting, and his voice in general was annoyingly stretchy. As Shane wasn't the sharpest tool in the box, he couldn't think of a good retort, and he could only open his mouth and look stupid.

"Are you OK? You're not diseased or anything?" the man inquired.

"What?!" Shane said. "No, I mean… that was just an accident, I… who the hell are you?"

The arrogant man walked closer towards Shane, and as he moved into the light, Shane noticed that the man was accompanied by a small, bluish, reptilian-looking Pokémon with a large, green bulb on it's back. Shane could immediately recognize it: the man had a Bulbasaur.

"I'm Damien. Damien Zachowski" the man said, but didn't seem willing to shake Shane's hand.

"Well, they call me Grant. Grant, uh… Grant Strong."

"Listen, dude, when thinking of fake names, try to be at least a little more creative than that. Please, it's embarrassing for both of us."

Shane decided to steer the conversation away from this, and decided to ask about the man's Pokémon.

"So, where did you get that Bulbasaur?"

"From Professor Oak, of course" Damien said. "What, have you been living under a rock? I was born and raised in Pallet Town and my parents have donated large sums of money to the Laboratory get me one of the starter Pokémon. Money talks, 'Grant'. So, where's your starter Pokémon."

"Well…" Shane said, whilst picking up Sandshrew. "This is my starter."

Damien snickered at this, but laughed even harder when he saw that Shane was serious.

"Seriously?" he laughed. "You could have at least waited to get your starter instead of picking some random thing from the wild."

"Yeah, well, I'm not a Trainer.""So what are you then?""I'm more like a private investigator" Shane said.

"Please, people just say that when they mean that they're unemployed and have no goal on their life and only got a Pokémon because they want to be in the 'cool' crowd."As Damien laughed at him, Shane felt increasingly annoyed by this person, but he couldn't help but to admire Damien's confidence.

"So, what are you doing here at Mt. Moon?" Shane asked, keeping a friendly tone in his voice.

"I'm here to look for an incredibly rare Pokémon, something that someone like you probably would have never heard of" Damien said, taking out a picture of the Pokémon from his pocket.

"What is that?" Shane asked, looking at a picture of a disgustingly cute, pink, fairy-like Pokémon.

"It's a Clefairy" Damien said. "I'm not sure what it does, but rumor says they live here, and for a rare Pokémon, I'd go anywhere.""So, how many Pokémon have you got, then?" Shane asked.

"Well… I only have two at the moment. This Bulbasaur and my Nidorino. But I still have one more than you, I presume. Besides, I have this!"

Damien reached into his pocket and grabbed another item and showed it to Shane: a small, shiny gray object shaped like a diamond.

"Nice piece of jewelry, who gave you that?" Shane asked.

"What? Jewelry?!" Damien snapped. "I got this Boulderbadge from Brock, the gym leader of Pewter!"

"I didn't know you two had a thing going on."

"No!" Damien said. "The badge signifies that I defeated Brock. What do you have to say about that."

"Oh, cool… I remember being told something like that."

Damien placed the Boulderbadge back in his pocket and Shane felt immediate envy at this. Without feeling the need to say goodbye, Damien merely turned around and started heading towards the tunnel, and Shane decided to tag along. Surprisingly enough, Damien didn't protest this, most likely because he wanted someone to witness his awesomeness.

However, despite spending hours on searching around the tunnels of Mt. Moon, Damien couldn't find a Clefairy anywhere, something which delighted Shane and annoyed Damien, who resorted in making fun of Shane for having only one Pokémon.

"Hey, I could get a second one whenever I wanted" Shane said. "Observe!"

Shane and Damien witnessed a flock of Zubat flying at the cave's ceiling. Deciding to impress Damien with his amazing skillz, Shane grabbed a Poké Ball and used all of his puny strength to chuck the ball at them. As it would turn out, the ball actually hit one of the Zubat, trapping the Pokémon inside the ball. With this outrageous violation of animal rights, the Zubat was his.

"Yeah!" Shane screamed, his voice echoing in the cave. "Rest your eyes on this, my friend, for thou hast been owned. Or, rather… uh… owned! Yeah!"

Damien seemed to be largely unimpressed with this flawless capture, however.

"A Zubat?" he mocked. "My grandmother could do better than that, and she's dead!"

"Shut up!" Shane said, now angered, but also happy that Damien took his time to insult him like that. "I'm getting so sick of this typical, 'arrogant and insulting rival'-character thing you got going on!"

"Rival?" Damien said. "You're not fit to kiss my boots, even if I had a pair! We're not rivals! I'm superior in every way!"

"Yeah, but you still haven't found a Clefairy, or anything for that matter!"

"Well, yeah, but…" Damien said, desperate to prove his awesomeness again. "Hey, there goes a rare-looking Pokémon!"

Damien pointed towards a red, parasite-like thing crawling nearby, apparently scared off by the loud noises. The Pokémon was easily identified from the two mushrooms sticking out of its back, so naturally, Shane couldn't recognize it, but decided to wait until Damien said its name first.

"All right!" Damien exclaimed. "A Paras!"

"A whatas?" Shane asked, before pretending that he knew it as well. "Oh yeah! A Paras! Right!"

"I'm not even going to bother to fight this one! Here we go!"

Damien arrogantly grabbed a Poké Ball and threw it towards the Paras. Like Zubat before, Paras was fairly easy to capture. It got trapped inside the ball, and after the ball shook on the ground for a few seconds, Paras was finally captured. Damien grinned and picked up the Poké Ball.

"Piece of cake!"

"Yeah, right!" Shane said and released the Zubat from its ball.

Shane's Zubat seemed to be a rather easy individual to tame, because after flying aimlessly for a moment, it landed on Shane's shoulder.

"Now, I need some sort of ultra-witty and smart nickname…" Shane said whilst walking towards the exit of the cave with Damien. "You're a Zubat, so I'm going to call you… Zuba! From now on, your name shall be Zuba!"

"What are you going to call it once it evolves into Golbat?" Damien asked.

"What's a Golbat?" Shane said, looking quite puzzled.

"What? You don't-"

Damien's impeding speech was, however, silenced by other loud noises coming from nearby. There were a large group of men in the cave besides them, and judging by their voices, they weren't so friendly. Shane and Damien hid into the shadows and watched as approximately seven men walked through a narrow pathway filled with lamps. Shane could recognize one of them: it was the same spacehead Shane encountered at the museum, who abruptly ran off and spoke in a stereotypical Spanish accent.

"All right, amigos" the man said. "I swear that I heard voices from here."

"You better be right this time, Miguel!" said another man, dressed in thoroughly black clothing, donning a black hat and having a large red R in his jacket. Now that Shane looked closely, four of the seven men looked exactly like that.

"I swear I am" Miguel said. "Damn, I should have known this when I ran into that weird guy at the museum!"

"If you were followed, Miguel," said another man dressed in black. "the boss won't be happy if you're messing the operation!"

"Hey, back off, esé, or you're going to have to answer to Pepe and José here! They're here to back me up. I don't trust you Rockettos."

As the men continued their arguing, their voices finally faded as they got farther away. Shane wanted to flee the place, but didn't want to look cowardly in front of Damien.

"Those were Team Rocket" Damien whispered. "Did you see?"

"Oh, those guys in black?" Shane asked. "I always wanted to see them. Jeez, they should keep an eye on how they dress. Did you see those three stereotypical latinos with them?"

"Yeah… well come on, we have to stop them!" Damien said.

"From doing what?"

"Isn't it obvious? They were the ones who lit this cave up, possibly to steal something priceless here, like fossils, or maybe Pokémon."

"Yeah, we should call the police!" Shane said, his urge of leaving suddenly growing. "Let's go!"

"We have to stop them ourselves, you sissy!" Damien said. "Don't you get it? We could get a large fee, maybe we'll be interviewed or something!"

"Well…" Shane said. "I could use the money, and fame would be nice. OK, let's go!"

Just as Damien and Shane turned around, they were face to face with Miguel and the Rocket Grunts.

"You fools!" Miguel yelled, while laughing triumph. "I don't know how stupid you could be, gringos, but in a cave like this, your voices can be heard from a relatively long distance! Who are you?"

"Uh, yeah, hi, I'm Shane and this is Damien, well, nice meeting you, goodbye!"

"Hold on, hero!" Damien said. "We're not taking no crap from you people. I thought you disappeared two and a half years ago!"

"Yes, I thought so too," Miguel said "but we all got to make a living. We don't want to end up being fan fiction writers, right? Anyway, I wouldn't know anything about Team Rocket anyway. I'm just your average Mexican guiding these people through the cave, accompanied by two friends. Now stand back, or get your asses kicked!"

The chaos that ensued happened so fast that Shane barely had time to think. Instead of heroically stepping up, Shane, along with his Pokémon, jumped and crouched behind a large rock. As Miguel and the rest of the crew grabbed Poké Balls from their belts, Damien was quicker as he threw two Poké Balls to the ground, Nidorino and Bulbasaur coming from them. Shane could only demonstrate Damien's masterful techniques as he ordered Bulbasaur and Nidorino to attack at the same moment when the numerous Rattata and Zubat emerged from the Poké Balls of the Rockets. Despite being pitted against four Rockets, Damien did very well, his two Pokémon defeating the Rockets' Pokémon easily.

"Seriously, man!" Miguel complained. "Do I have to take care of this cat all by himself? Drowzee, go!"

Miguel threw a Poké Ball of his own to the ground, and out came Drowzee, a Psychic-type Pokémon resembling a bipedal anteater. Damien was initially scared by the arrival of the Psychic-type, but nevertheless ordered Nidorino to charge at the Drowzee with a Horn Attack.

"Drowzee! Confusion!" Miguel yelled.

Drowzee did its masters bidding, attacking and knocking out Nidorino with a single attack.

"You! Shane!" Damien said. "I could use with some help here!"

As Shane realized that he could step in and become a hero, he immediately got excited, and turned to Shrew. But Shrew wasn't going to move anywhere, as it merely cowered behind the rock, watching as Damien's Bulbasaur was fighting two Zubat at once. Shane couldn't blame it, but at least he had another Pokémon in his disposal.

"Fine, be a coward, Shrew!" Shane said before turning to Zuba. "OK, Zuba, go and help Damien out. Attack with… let's say…"

"Just tell it to use Supersonic!" Damien screamed whilst recalling Nidorino to it's Poké Ball and ordering Bulbasaur to attack Miguel's Drowzee.

"Right! Zuba, Supersonic!"

Zuba did as ordered. It flew towards the enemy with great courage, then emitted an ear-piercing noise that apparently affected Miguel and the Rockets as well. However, a Rattata commanded by one of the Rockets tried to Tackle, Zubat, but this time, Shane was ready.

"Zuba! Bite him!"

Despite being in the middle of all the hubbub, Zuba could hear Shane's orders. Even though Shane had no idea about Zuba's possible attacks, Zuba was quite familiar with biting, so it sunk its fangs on Rattata, causing the rat Pokémon to cease its attack and return to its owner. Zuba's joy was short-lived, however, as Miguel told Drowzee to use Hypnosis, an attack that lulled Zuba and Damien's Bulbasaur to sleep in a matter of seconds.

"Damn it!" Damien cursed as Miguel smirked victoriously.

"That wasn't too hard, wasn't it, gringo?" Miguel said, then spoke to his two cronies. "OK, get them! Show no mercy!"

Miguel's compadres, Pepe and José approached Damien, as well as Shane, still cowering behind the rock, fully aware that he could be seen. But Damien was unshaken, as he resorted using his last Pokémon. Damien threw his Poké Ball to the ground, and Paras came out. Pepe and José stopped on their tracks upon seeing Paras, and the whole group started laughing at the sight of the creature, even Miguel's Drowzee chuckled.

"Paras! Use Spore" Damien muttered, his voice unheard by the Rockets who were too busy laughing at the puny Paras.

Paras did as ordered: it released a cloud of yellow pollen towards the bad guys, and soon their laughter stopped and they collapsed into the ground, one at a time. After hiding for a few more seconds, Shane stepped away from the rock and recalled Zuba to its Poké Ball.

"Wow!" Shane said, quite impressed by the Spore. "You killed them!"

"No, idiot!" Damien snapped. "They're sleeping. Spore puts the opponent to sleep, but while Hypnosis only has a 60% chance of succeeding, Spore never misses."

"Yeah, I knew that, too" Shane said. "I just didn't want to embarrass you."

"Oh, by the way, you did one heck of a job cowering behind that rock, Shane. You're a real winner material. In fact, I like you so much that I think I'm going to leave you here and go challenge the Cerulean City Gym. Alone. So long!"

Damien left, and Shane remained behind, unable to come up with anything to say. Shane was obviously irritated by Damien's behavior and pathetic anime-style phrases, but he also felt some sort of strange admiration for the man. His style of battling and his self-confidence were certainly something unseen by Shane. It soon occurred to Shane that he was alone with seven sleeping and soon-to-be angry criminals, so he decided to leave the cave as quickly as possible.

Despite Mt. Moon's linear structure, it took Shane three hours to get away from Mt. Moon. He soon stumbled outside, only to find out that he still had to go through the _second_ half of Mt. Moon. Shane decided to set camp with his Pokémon, but because it was even darker outside than in the cave, Shane decided to stay where he was. As he slept, Shrew and Zuba stayed up all night. They witnessed a group of Clefairy dancing around a huge boulder, apparently the Moon Stone, but decided not to wake up Shane.

Instead, Shane was woken up by something else. The morning sun didn't get him up, but he did wake up when he found out that there was a long line of angry people behind him: apparently, he had set his camp right in front of the entrance to the Mt. Moon Gift Shop.


	4. The Retarded Journey Continues

**Chapter Four: **_**The Retarded Journey Continues**_

The location was Cerulean City. Shane had arrived to the city where dreams come true. In comparison to Pewter City's dull atmosphere, Cerulean City was colorful and full of life. "Full" meaning that there was about twenty NPC's around, possibly more. Now that Shane had a whopping amount of two Pokémon, he decided to challenge the Cerulean City Gym Leader, Misty, the expert on water-type Pokémon.

"All right, Misty!" Shane said. "I've come to challenge you!"

"Very well then, challenger" said Misty, the red-haired, swimsuit-wearing Gym Leader. "But I must warn you, I'm highly skilled."

"Yeah, sure… you're just a girl!"

"Watch it, buddy!" Misty snapped. "I have a huge internet following. I even had a TV series once, but my character was replaced with some tramp and I got fired."

"I've seen that show" Shane said. "and it sucks. Seriously, it makes no sense and it's just too predictable and repetitive, and-"

"Enough! Are you ready to fight, Shane?"

Shane immediately decided to send Zuba to battle, while Misty sent out her Staryu, a starfish-like Pokémon with no visible eyes, just some sort of jewel in the middle. It was quite powerful, however, as Zuba's attacks did not do much to Staryu, which eventually took Zuba down with a single Water Gun. Shane recalled Zuba, and decided to use Shrew. Even though it was still a coward, it fare well against Staryu despite the type disadvantage. Shane also had figured out an effective strategy with Shrew. He first ordered it to use Defense Curl and curl up to a ball, then use Rollout for maximum effectiveness, knocking Staryu out. Misty recalled Staryu and sent out an even stronger Pokémon: Starmie, Staryu's evolved form. Despite Shrew's newfound strength, it lost to Starmie immediately once it struck Shrew with a powerful Bubblebeam-attack, knocking Shrew out.

"Ha! I won!" Misty laughed. "No Cascadebadge for you, Viridian boy! Now get out of my gym, I've got challengers who all want to catch a glimpse of me!"

June 13th: "_My dearest readers, if there are any at this point. I have successfully gone past Cerulean City. During my confrontation with Misty, I heroically surrendered so she could keep her glory, and refused to accept the Cascadebadge. I think it is time to enlighten you, dearest readers, with my tale of bravery. Being a lone wolf, I politely refused various girls from following me on my journey. One of these groupies would be Leaf, a nice girl I met on my way towards Mt. Moon. I convinced her to keep true to her dream and convinced her that I needed to fulfill my destiny alone._"

June 14th: "_Seeing as I missed the bus heading towards Vermilion City, I've decided to hang around Cerulean City and visit the Cerulean Cape. After losing five battles in a row, I decided to look for a hotel. As it turned out, there are no hotels in Cerulean, but at least the usage of the Pokémon Center is free, unlike in Pewter, where they have serious financial problems. They were forced to close down the museum because of 'renovations'. In reality, this was because of Team Rocket, who confronted me in Mt. Moon. I should tell you, my experience with Team Rocket was horrifying. I was trapped inside a cave, my acquaintance Damien hiding behind a rock and praying. I was alone, facing hundreds of Rocket Grunts, so the odds were ALMOST even. Almost. Needless to say, I kicked their asses." _

June 20th: "_I have finally arrived to Vermilion City, but the snobs at S.S. Anne kicked me off their lousy boat because I didn't have a ticket. As the ship set sail towards Cinnabar Island, I could only watch as my arch-rival Damien Zachowski stood at the deck, waving at me._"

June 21st: "_I have decided not to stay in Vermilion City, despite the wonderful odors that can be detected in this lovely port town. I'm quite motivated to head towards the Kanto Power Plant, and I'll tell you why. Yesterday, I encountered some crazy old man who told me about the legendary bird Pokémon, Articuno, Zapdos and Moltres, who represent ice, thunder and fire, respectively. I am now going after them, and my first object of reverence is Zapdos. According to this very reliable (albeit smelly) old man, there is a strong chance that Zapdos could make its roost in the abandoned Power Plant._"

June 22nd: "_The friendly couple who I have been staying with in Vermilion City seems rather excited about me finally leaving, but I suppose that's just because they really want me to succeed. Before leaving, I decided to barge into a house, as no one locks their doors here anyway. I encountered a fisherman, who kept asking me if I like fishing. I really wanted to get that fishing rod he was offering, not because I like fishing but because I wanted to catch more Pokémon. Being honest, I replied 'no' every time he asked me if I liked fishing and refused to give the rod! The weird thing is, that I could just talk to him over and over again, and he kept asking the same question! How does that make any god damn sense? Anyway, I figured out the logical answer to this puzzle: I broke into his house, knocked the fisherman unconscious with a lamp and stole his rod. That'll teach the old knave some manners!_"

June 25th: "_So far, I have only been able to catch Magikarp. Even I'm not stupid enough to waste my Poké Balls on them (it's not like they evolve into anything cool), so I just let them go every time I encounter one."_

June 27th: "_I'm approaching the Power Plant. For some reason, they thought it was smart to build a Power Plant into an area completely inaccessible without crossing a river - they didn't even bother to build a bridge or anything. So, after trying and trying and trying and trying some more, I finally captured a Poliwag. I heroically told Shrew to beat the poor thing unconscious, then threw a ball at it, and now it's mine. All mine! After seeing the swirls on its belly, I decided to name the Poliwag 'Swirly'. How creative am I?"_

Shane had finally arrived to the location of the Power Plant. It was at the other side of the river, near the Rock Tunnel and a Pokémon Center that was conveniently built nearby. Shane decided to use his new friend, Swirly, to get to the other side of the river, but apparently Swirly wasn't strong enough to get Shane safely to the other side. So, Shane was forced to borrow a rowboat from the Pokémon Center. After some intense paddling, Shane arrived to the Power Plant, a spooky, abandoned old building, with some machinery still running. To have some company, Shane decided to keep Shrew out of its ball.

"Don't be afraid, Shrew" Shane said, though mostly to himself. "There's nothing to worry about in old buildings… except possibly headcrabs or ghosts. Like scary little girls staring at you and teleporting from random places… OK, that's it! I'm out!"

Shane was about to storm out from the Power Plant, but Shrew, without even saying anything or making a sound, just by looking at him, made him realize that he would need to go all the way through the Power Plant to see Zapdos. As he wondered what direction to take, he heard something making weird mechanical noises float next to him.

"Sandshrew?" he said. "OH SHIt's a Magnemite! How cool is that?!"

Shane recognized the Pokémon floating next to him: Magnemite, a quiet, inorganic Pokémon with magnets sticking out of it and with one, big eye in the middle. Shane felt that it would make an excellent addition to his ever-growing addition. But he couldn't do anything, as Magnemite, being an Electric-type Pokémon, attacked Shane with a powerful Thundershock.

"OW!" Shane said, his internal organs being burned by the electrical shock. "That was mean! Shrew, use Scratch and kick that Magnemite's ass… if it does have one."

Shrew did as ordered and pulled out its powerful claws. But once again, as Shrew tried to strike Magnemite with its claws, all Shane heard was a loud 'clank' and Shrew bounced back, its claw having been cut off by the Magnemite's steel hard body.

"What! Magnemite is an Electric/Steel-type now? I didn't get the memo! OK, Shrew! Use, uh… Dig! Use Dig!"

Shrew nodded in agreement and used its remaining claws to burrow itself into the ground. Magnemite was confused for a few moments, until Shrew popped out of the ground and struck the Magnet Pokémon with all the strength it had, knocking Magnemite into a nearby wall. Knowing it was his opportunity, Shane grabbed a Poké Ball and chucked it at the Magnemite. The Pokémon was trapped inside, and after the ball stopped waggling, Magnemite was his.

"Yes!" Shane exclaimed, while holding the ball victoriously. "That was kind of cruel, though. I wonder why PETA hasn't already complained about these games. Oh well."

Shane held the Poké Ball in his hands, wondering what would be a good nickname.

"Let's see… it's a Magnemite. I think I'll call it… Droid! This Magnemite shall be called 'Droid'! At least I think it's a cool name…"

With a fourth Pokémon in his arsenal, Shane continued to walk deeper into the Power Plant, until he finally came across an enormous generator. He realized that he was in a room that was as high as the entire Power Plant, with a small window being barely visible near the ceiling. Zapdos was bound to be there somewhere, but Shane didn't like the place. Too much electricity and dangerous devices all over the place. Just as Shane was about to turn to Shrew and suggest leaving, a beam being held by a loose screw suddenly dropped off the ceiling, hitting Shane to the head, causing him to collapse on the floor. Before losing his consciousness, however, he could swear that he saw something large, yellow and sparkling fly in the distance, emitting a horrible, screeching noise. As everything he saw was so blurry, he was not sure what it was, and then, he lost consciousness.

Shrew noticed this immediately and at first, ran around, panicked and unsure what to do when its owner had screwed up even worse than usual. Then, it calmed down, and despite only being able to say its own name, decided to step into action. First, Shrew tapped all of Shane's Poké Balls, releasing Zuba, Swirly and Droid from their Poké Balls. Apparently, they understood Shrew's panicked squeals, as they soon leaped into action. Zuba carried Shrew and Swirly to the window, while Droid used its Magnet Rise-attack to lift Shane into the air and carry him safely out of the window as well. Zuba helped Swirly down, and Swily swam to the Pokémon Center, calling for help.

Eventually, Shane recovered, and as he woke up, he kept mumbling to himself.

"No… Professor McFleetwood, put your pants back on… I need to work… Mmhmm…"

"Shane" said a soothing voice. "Shane! Wake up!"

Shane opened his eyes, only to see a rather familiar-looking girl looking down on him.

"Weed!" Shane said. "What are you doing here?"

"My name is Leaf, not Weed" Leaf said. "I'm just passing through. What happened to you?"

"I was at the Power Plant… I think something heavy fell on my head… No big deal, it's happened before… How did I get here?"

"You should thank your Pokémon. They rescued you!"

"You did?" Shane said, immensely grateful to his four Pokémon, all looking at him and waiting appraisals, all happy that Shane didn't die.

Shane got up from the ground, and realized that Leaf was the only one in the area who seemed to notice that anything happened to Shane. Nevertheless, he wasn't one to be discouraged by these kind of people. After thanking his Pokémon once more, Shane recalled Zuba, Swirly and Droid into their balls and decided to continue his journey.

"Why were you in that Power Plant?" Leaf asked.

"Well, I… wait a minute?" Shane paused, and looked intently at the Power Plant's direction. "Did you see it?! I saw it! It was Zapdos! It flew out of the Power Plant!"

"Zapdos? Are you sure? I didn't see anything!"

"I swear! It was Zapdos! It flew inside the Power Plant and then it… left."

Leaf seemed like she wasn't sure what to think, and Shane was upset because she didn't believe him. Needless to say, he soon forgot about the entire issue and decided to focus on finding the other legendary Pokémon, Articuno or Moltres. He had no idea where they could roost, however, but Shane could still try. As Shane was lost in his thoughts and stared blankly into a distance, Leaf seemed kind of worried.

"Uh, Shane…" Leaf said. "You said you were heading to Celadon City, right?"

"Yeah, that's right" Shane said. "I think."

"Well let's head there together, then" Leaf said. "I'll guide you the Rock Tunnel. I have a Charmander, so it can light up our path. The Rock Tunnel is pitch-black inside, you know."

"I have a better idea" Shane suggested. "Since I am the most masculine person present, maybe _I_ should lead us through the Rock Tunnel and use _your_ Charmander as a torch. Pretty clever, eh?"

Leaf sighed, but decided not to argue with Shane.

"Sure, Shane. Let us follow your lead. Step into the dark tunnel!"

"Of course, uh… ladies first, right?"


	5. Double Trouble

**Chapter Five: **_**Double Trouble**_

July 3rd: "_Übermeister Silas 'Shane' Stephens' log. Thanks to my ever-so-awesome abilities in navigation, it only took us three days to get through the Rock Tunnel. Leaf claims that most people get through the tunnel in a matter of three or four hours, but surely she was just exaggerating. Now, we have been hiking for three days towards Celadon City. For some odd reason, we couldn't use the faster route and go to Celadon through Saffron City. When I tried to walk in through the gates, the crazy gatekeeper said something about being thirsty, and therefore, couldn't let us in. What a chump! So, when I tried to show my masculinity by going through the gate by force, the thirsty guard pistol-whipped me until I cried for mercy. After Leaf helped me out of that dumpster the guard threw me in, we started our long hike_."

July 5th: "_I hope we're approaching Celadon City by now. Leaf likes to boast that she already has three badges. When she asked how many badges I had, I decided to change the subject quickly. As if I, a crusader for knowledge and information, needed any stinking badges! My clipbook about legendaries is unfortunately empty, but I did scribble a haiku I wrote about Zapdos. Well, it's not really a haiku, because I have some troubles with keeping the amount of syllables proper."_

July 7th: "_I realized that it's been a month since I started this journey. A full month! Can you believe that? I'm getting pretty exhausted by now, but after all, I'm a crusader for civilization, peace, integrity, freedom, and… things like that. I'm also starting to get used my travel companion, Leaf. We talk about a lot of stuff. Or, actually, I talk about stuff and she nods in agreement, sometimes looking annoyed. I guess she's PMSing or something. I'm actually not attracted to Leaf anymore. Sure, she's hot and all, but I don't feel any 'urges' around her like when I first met her. I actually just 'like her as a friend', as crazy as it sounds. Instead of Leaf, I've been thinking a lot about Damien and his all-in-all awesomeness, even though he is quite annoying. Maybe I'm thinking about Damien a little too much? Wow, not that I'm insecure about my masculinity or anything, but… I think I need to find a woman, quickly!"_

July 8th: "_We've been walking on for an endless amount of time by now. I swear, if we're not in Celadon City soon, I'm going to-"_

"Shane! Stop writing your diary for a moment and take a look at this!"

"This isn't a diary!" Shane said, rather insulted by Leaf's remark. "It's a log!"

"Whatever" Leaf shouted, looking towards the horizon. "Come on!"

Shane ran to the cliff Leaf was standing on, and saw what she saw: a large city, bigger than Shane had ever seen before (although Shane hadn't seen many). This, was Celadon City, home of the Department Store, the Game Corner, the Pokémon Mansion and Erika's Gym. Happy for finally arriving, Shane and Leaf ran down the cliff towards Celadon, Leaf being especially enthusiastic about shopping at the store. Shane and Leaf had different plans, however, so they decided to meet each other later at the Game Corner.

Shane was rather interested in the Pokémon Mansion, as it was owned by a rich old lady with tons of Pokémon. That said, Shane was also relatively creeped out by the lady. It's not like he had ever met her, but the word on the streets was that the old lazy was crazy, and Shane always believed the word on the streets. Instead, Shane decided to find out about the people who had rented rooms from her. Shane was most interested in the Know-It-All, a person living in the fourth floor of the mansion, who was organizing a contest: those who completed his quiz about Pokémon would receive a free Pokémon, the rare Eevee.

Shane rushed upstairs, ready to receive his prize, but as soon as he arrived to the Know-It-All's floor, he found out he was too late.

"Splendid job, young trainer!" the Know-It-All said to someone. "You are truly worthy of this Eevee!"

"Son of a…" Shane bit his tongue before saying anything, but it was hard: the recipient of the Eevee was none other than Damien, to Shane's utmost annoyance.

Damien took the Poké Ball containing the Eevee from the Know-It-All and prepared to leave.

"Oh, hello, Shane" Damien said, pretending to be surprised. "I'm glad you noticed my latest Pokémon, Eevee. I bet you didn't know that Eevee can evolve into seven different Pokémon!"

"Well, your bet was… wrong!" Shane said. "But listen, weren't you heading to Cinnabar Island just previously?"

"Jeez, that was weeks ago" Damien said. "I already have five badges, by the way. I'm not even going to ask how many badges you have. Later!"

The infuriating Damien left again, and Shane had enough. He was going to challenge the Celadon City Gym. After walking into random locations in the city for a few hours, he finally found the gym. It was in a quiet place of town, with the only person present being a weird old man peeping through the much thinking, Shane stumbled into the gym and challenged the gym leader, Erika, and through an amazing streak of luck, he won his first badge, the Rainbowbadge. The details of this amazing victory shall be left untold. Shane then stepped out of the gym, holding the Rainbowbadge in the air.

Shane and Leaf rendezvoused at the Game Corner, where Shane was rather excited on trying his luck, mostly because they gave prizes in exchange for game coins, and for 9999 coins, Shane could receive a Porygon. Shane immediately cashed in all his money for game coins, which he then inserted into a nearby slot machine. As Shane stuffed in more and more coins, Leaf wandered around the Game Corner, searching for the bar. Instead, she saw a man dressed in black, standing in front of a poster. Leaf assumed that the guy was working at the casino.

"Excuse me!" Leaf called out the man, and approached him. "Could you tell where the b-"

With a swift move, the man grabbed a nightstick and hit Leaf on the head, causing her to collapse on the floor. The man then pressed a hidden button behind the poster, opening a staircase where the man dragged Leaf into. While being dragged, Leaf woke up and tried to scream for help, but her mouth was covered by the man. Shane was so mesmerized by the gambling that he failed to even notice Leaf being dragged into the Game Corner's basement.

While Leaf was being escorted to the basement of the Game Corner, she could look around her, and she realized that the casino was controlled by Team Rocket. Sure, she had heard of it, but she imagined that Team Rocket was chased out of town almost three years prior.

Finally, Leaf and her escort arrived to the fourth basement floor, where the two entered a dilapidated, but still functional office once ran by Giovanni, the leader of Team Rocket. Currently, it was overrun by Nigel, a young and ambitious Rocket Executive wearing an expensive-looking suit. As they arrived to Nigel's office, Leaf was thrown on the floor.

"So, my dear" Nigel said to Leaf, with a murderous look on his face. "For what reason have you infiltrated our lair. Who sent you? What do you know?"

"I… I…""If you do not know anything, then we still have a chance of surviving through this ordeal. Unfortunately, that also means that we have dispose of possible threats. Unfortunately, you are one of them. Gentlemen!"

Leaf was paralyzed by fear as two more Rocket Grunts arrived to Nigel's office. Just as they were about to grab Leaf, they were surprised to see Shane stumbling into the office.

"Finally!" Shane said. "Look, I need to speak to the manager! I have spent approximately five thousand coins on the slot machines without winning anything! What's going on?"

"How did you get here?" Nigel asked.

As he said this, Nigel gave an angry glare at the Rocket Grunt who delivered Leaf to his office. The Grunt then slapped his forehead with an embarrassed look on his face.

"Oh, silly me!" he said. "When I opened the hidden staircase, I forgot to close it. Well, these things happen, right?"

"Indeed" Nigel said. "You're fired. The rest of you, seize these two and lock them up somewhere!"

"Wait a second…" Shane said, finally understanding the situation. "Are you guys Team Rocket? Because that would explain a lot! Oh, and by the looks of this place and the big R's on your uniforms, you indeed are. In that case, let me just help my friend Leaf to get up and we'll be on our way out…"

"Not so fast, my friend" Nigel said and stood up from his chair, glancing at Shane and Leaf. "Pretending to be dumb does not work for me. Machoke!"

A seven-foot tall, statue-looking, extremely muscular Pokémon barged into the office, wearing black gym shorts and a belt. It was Machoke, a Fighting-type Pokémon, apparently in Nigel's command.

"Machoke, be a dear and squeeze our two friends here until they talk" Nigel said.

Machoke did as ordered, and with a single swift move, it picked up Shane and Leaf, held them in the air and started strangling them.

"Now then, whoever you are…"

"I'm Shane! Shane Stephens, my story checks out, I have a fake ID that I made when I was a kid… It's somewhere over here…"

"Silence!" Nigel grunted. "I don't care. You seemed to have recognized our uniforms, but that can't be possible, seeing as we have kept a low profile ever since returning to Kanto… have you seen us somewhere before?"

"Look, if you're talking about that little incident at Mt. Moon," Shane gasped, his throat being in serious pain when in Machoke's tight grasp. "then I'm not the guy you're looking for. Blame Damien! Damien Zachowski! He messed up your operations, and he's an asshole in general!"

"Zachowski, eh… thanks for the tip! Let them go, Machoke!"

Machoke released its grip, causing Shane and Leaf to fall on the floor, Leaf clenching on her throat and struggling to breathe.

"Unfortunately," Nigel said, opened a drawer on his desk and pulled out a gun. "you have seen too much. Unless you can think of a good one-liner here, I'll shoot you!"

As Shane started thinking about what to write on his tombstone, a stream of acid erupted from the direction of the door, hitting Nigel's hand, burning it and forcing him to drop the gun. Nigel screamed in pain, and the Rocket Grunts looked around in panic, trying to find out where the Acid came from. All of the sudden, the Rocket Grunts were slashed by razor-sharp leaves that were flying around. Shane and Leaf immediately ducked, and the whole office was hit by a powerful Solarbeam attack, knocking Nigel and the Rockets unconscious.

"That should do" a woman at the door said.

"Hey, you're Erika! The Gym Leader!" Shane said. "I just defeated you a few paragraphs ago!"

"That's right" Erika said. "I have a gambling problem, so I visit the Game Corner every day. During my daily game, I heard some ruckus from the basement and decided to check things out. Trust me, it wouldn't be the first time Team Rocket is causing trouble in Celadon!"

"Guys!" Leaf suddenly screamed. "He's getting away!"

But it was too late. Nigel's Machoke had already crawled into a ventilation shaft, and now, it pulled Nigel in with it.

"You will not capture me! And you!" Nigel said, pointing at Shane. "If there's any man left in you, you shall come meet me to the Pokémon Tower, where we shall have a duel, face to face! Goodbye!"

After Nigel made a melodramatic exit, Shane contemplated on whether or not to follow him, and then turned to Leaf."Where's the Pokémon Tower?" he asked.

"It's in Lavender Town. That's where they bury dead Pokémon in, but Shane, you're not really going there, are you?"

"Hey, he's doubting my masculinity!" Shane said. "So, right after I'm going to grab some brunch and make my will, I'm heading down there to confront this guy! It's principles, damn it! Besides, I want to know what the hell is going on. Sometimes I feel that my life has been nothing but a series of moderately hilarious events!"

Shane then left Celadon City, the city of peace and comfort, towards Lavender Town, a quiet town near the mountains. Lavender Town had a strange, pressuring atmosphere around it, possibly due to the numerous dead bodies in town. The town was rather small, and Shane could easily see the tall, intimidating tower casting a great shadow over the town. His trip towards the tower wasn't easy, though, because as soon as he took a step towards the tower, he heard a rather familiar voice coming from the direction of the Lavender Volunteer Pokémon House:

"I can't believe it! Hey! Shane! It's me!"

Shane turned around and let out a small moan: it was Timmy. He had nowhere to run, so he stood still as Timmy, wearing an apron for some reason, approached him.

"Nice to see you here!" Timmy said in his usual, over-enthusiastic tone. "It's too bad you were too busy to stick around at Pewter…"

"Yeah, too bad, indeed" Shane said. "Listen, I'm in a bit of a rush now! I need to get to the Pokémon Tower, and I'm sure you're busy working… wherever you're working at."

"I work a the Lavender Volunteer Pokémon House now!" Timmy said. "It's great, we take care of Pokémon abandoned by their owners. Unfortunately, the owner of the Volunteer House, Mr. Fuji, has-"

"Yeah, yeah, I didn't ask for you life story, Tommy! I'll just head to the Pokémon Tower, now."

After a relatively short hike, Shane arrived to the Pokémon Tower. It indeed had an ominous presence to it, and it was rather tall, possibly fifteen to twenty stories high. As Shane entered the tower, he released Shrew from its Poké Ball. It curiously looked around it for a while, then saw the Tower and immediately curled into a ball, scared of the tower.

"For crying out loud, Shrew!" Shane reprimanded the Pokémon. "It's just a scary tower filled with ghosts. Normally, I would have soiled my pants by now, but I've got you, Zuba, Swirly and Droid keeping me company. Now don't be such a wuss!"

Shane had no idea where he would confront Nigel, so he decided to continuously go higher and higher until he met the guy. He almost gave up when he heard that the tower had no elevator, but eventually decided to settle for stairs. As Shane and Shrew climbed, they encountered thousands of tombstones, all identical, all containing carvings about the Pokémon in question. They also encountered some grieving people, but by the time they got into the eighth floor, there were no grievers left, merely strange-talking and strangely-dressing women calling themselves "channelers". After a seemingly endless walk, Shane arrived to the nineteenth floor, where Shrew suddenly started shivering. They also were positive that they saw strange, purple spirits at the ceiling, but decided to walk into the twentieth floor anyway.

The twentieth floor of the Pokémon Tower was largely different from all of the previous ones. It had no graves in it, and otherwise, was small and lacked ornaments of any kind. At first, the floor was dark, but it was immediately lit when Shane entered it. Shane could see himself surrounded by at least four Rocket Grunts, he could hear the sounds of their automatic weapons being cocked and he could feel the living shit being scared out of him.

"Dude…" said one Rocket Grunt. "Did you just wet your pants?"

"No!" Shane yelled. "I spilled some water on them… is all…"

"Silence!" a voice suddenly boomed. "Leave the two of us alone."

"But sir, we have in on our sight and if we leave now, then we'll have to readjust our aim again and that takes time, plus we may have to-"

"Did you not hear what I said?" Nigel said with the most dangerous voice he could do. "Leave. Us. Alone!"

"Yes, sir, Mr. Nigel, sir!"

The four Rocket Grunts who pointed their guns at Shane left, leaving Shane and Nigel alone, for the first time, seeing as they only met a few hours prior.

"So," Nigel said "since you have taken great pride on meddling in my business, I'm sure you wish to know about our operations here in Lavender Town!"

"Well," Shane said and shrugged. "I don't really care, so-

"Ever since our beloved leader Giovanni disappeared, we, Team Rocket have lived in recluse at the Sevii Islands. Then, one day, our savior, the Masked Man, arrived. With his help, we rose from the ashes and regrouped, ready to complete the work that Giovanni began. Unfortunately, the Masked Man didn't see it fit to lead us in Kanto, so we had to think of a plan. Eventually, we received the help we needed. It came from a friend of ours, a businessman, called Cyrus. He recommended us the plan that we're preparing now, and I will not let you meddle in that one!

"Listen, Nigel!" Shane said, interrupting this flow of speech. "I'm glad you took time to tell me all that and deliver your speech in a melodramatic and rather pathetic manner, but I didn't catch half of that. Could you get back to the part about your beloved leader… whoever that was?"

"Enough! We will settle this here!"

Nigel grabbed a Poké Ball from his belt and threw it to the battleground, releasing a ferocious-looking Pokémon resembling a rat, but which was the size of a sheep. Shane recognized it as Rattata's evolved form, Raticate.

"OK, Droid, this guy wants a battle, and we'll give him one! Go!"

Shane threw Droid's Poké Ball to the arena, and the feisty Magnemite was itching for battle. Shane had a strong feeling that he could win, as Droid had just previously defeated Erika's entire party. Shane decided to immediately show Nigel what he was made of, and ordered Droid to attack Raticate with a Thundershock. Droid did as ordered, shocking Raticate, and while the attack hurt, Raticate was far from out. Nigel ordered Raticate to attack with a Charge Beam, but Droid dodged the attack. Next, Raticate attacked with Bubblebeam, managing to hurt Droid a bit. Shane retorted by using Supersonic to confuse Raticate, then attacked it with Sonicboom, knocking out the Raticate.

"Yes!" Shane exclaimed, jumping around victoriously. "In your face, suckah! Way to go, Droid! High five! Oh, sorry, I forgot…"

"Do not rejoice so early, my friend" Nigel said. "The battle is far from over. Two Pokémon, remember? For this occasion, I think I'll use… Machoke!"

Nigel unleashed the powerful Pokémon that had strangled Shane previously, but now, Shane was ready for it. He ordered Magnemite to hit it with Thundershock, but Machoke was surprisingly quick, dodging the attack and then grabbing Droid from behind, using Seismic Toss. For this attack, Machoke got a tight hold of Droid, spun it around and around until finally releasing it and throwing it to the wall, knocking it out.

"Your Pokémon have no chance against my Machoke" Nigel said. "Surrender while you still can."

"You know, Nigel. Your phrases are awful, seriously. Besides, uh… you're dumb! Shrew, defend my honor! Waste that Machoke!"

Shrew was hesitant to attack, but it was not like it had a choice, so it charged towards the Machoke. As Shane ordered Shrew to use Slash, Nigel ordered his Machoke to attack with Low Kick, and naturally, Machoke was both faster and stronger, kicking Shrew away. This minor setback was not enough to let the Sandshrew down, however, so Shane decided to take advantage of the situation and call for Shrew's patented attack: Defense Curl, then Rollout. Shrew did as ordered, curling itself into a ball and striking Machoke with full power, hitting it to the jaw. A sound of possible bones breaking could be heard as Machoke fell to the floor.

"NO!"

Nigel's scream was futile, however. He had lost the battle, whereas Shane couldn't believe his eyes. He had won his third match, now having a pretty sweet win-loss ratio: three victories, thirty-three losses. As Nigel looked like he was about to call his goons for help, a loud racket could be heard downstairs, and soon, an old man accompanied by a Pokémon wielding a bone club entered the floor where Shane and Nigel were in. Fearing he might be outmatched, Nigel smashed the window next to him and jumped out, once again escaping captivity. Shane was not interested in this, however, as he was curious about the old man and his Pokémon.

"Thanks for helping me out!" Shane said. "Who are you?"

"I am Mr. Fuji. While I run the Lavender Volunteer Pokémon House, I also check things around here every so often. Like you, I am against all the crimes committed by Team Rocket."

Shane had a vacant look on his face, and instead of listening to Fuji, he concentrated his attention on the Pokémon with him. It was a relatively small, brown, bipedal, mammal-like Pokémon, who, as stated earlier, wielded a bone club as a weapon and wore a skull to cover its face.

"Oh, this is Cubone" Fuji said. "I adopted it after Team Rocket killed its mother, here, in this tower, two and a half years ago. Right there where you are standing now!" Fuji added, prompting Shane to take a few steps back. "Like me, Cubone also appreciates the help you did today. We want thank you for chasing Team Rocket out of this town!"

"No problem, I'm glad to help!" Shane said, but not without a sinister motive. "So, am I going to get some gnarly gift? Like a cool flute that will help me wake up sleeping Pokémon?"

"I'm afraid I don't have that kind of item anymore, as I gave it to a young adventurer called Red two and a half years ago."

"Damn this Red-fellow!" Shane grunted. "Who does he think he is, anyway? It's like I have just been following in his footsteps all along, repeating the things he did earlier. How stupid is that?"

"But surely my gratitude is enough reward for you?" Fuji suggested.

"Screw you, old man!" Shane replied, and stormed out of the Pokémon Tower, not wanting to stick around in this lousy, cheapskate town.


	6. Light my fire!

**Chapter Six: _Light my fire!_**

July 15th: "_My tale of amazing heroism continues. A week ago, I saved the puny little town of Lavender, saving the old Mr. Fuji and defeated Team Rocket yet again. Being as modest as I was, I refused to accept a reward for my actions: the smiles of the townspeople were more than enough. Still, it would have been nice to get at least a little bit money…_"

July 20th: "_I have decided to prove my worth to the snobs at the Legendary Society. That weird but impressive man I met before, Lance, claimed that only the most skilled trainers were accepted into the Society. Damn! I should have retorted with 'So how did you get in, then?'. Hahah! That would have been so awesome. Anyway, I'm not sure what he meant by 'proving my worth', but I guess I have to collect plenty of badges. Unfortunately, I only have one badge in my possession, so I guess I need more. Is two enough? I sure hope so…_"

July 23rd: "_I'm still on my way towards Fuschia City, a moderately lively city in southern Kanto. While I head there, I might as well amuse you, my dear reader, about my recent endeavors. After getting lost and quietly sobbing in a cave for seven hours, I decided to catch a new Pokémon. Using my fishing pole, I captured a Staryu! Still, I'd like to focus on training the Pokémon I have now, and the Staryu seemed powerful enough, so I sent (don't ask me how) the Staryu to Ferguson, my friend, who I'm sure you remember from the second chapter_."

July 26th: "_Well, I came, I saw and I… won? Is it? Anyway, I defeated Janine, the leader of the Fuschia City Gym, after arriving to this naturally beautiful town. I should have stayed for a longer time, but the main attraction of the city, the Safari Zone, has been closed. The Warden has left for a vacation, but apparently he forgot to mention it to anyone else. Also, I mainly wanted to challenge the Fuschia Gym because I heard that the Gym Leader, Koga, was highly skilled. You can't believe how disappointed I was when, instead of Koga, I had to battle some whiny girl called Janine, who claimed to be Koga's daughter or something. She sure was a pushover! I only had to rematch her four times!"_

July 31st: "_I'm on way to Cinnabar Island. Boo-yah! I got rather lucky, as I bought the last ticket for the ferry. Well, truth to be told, that annoying bird keeper, Timmy, was waiting for me in Fuschia and wanted to tag along, so I bought the last TWO tickets, not wanting him to ruin everything for me. Cinnabar Island, baby! Here I come!"_

The hot summer continued as July turned to August. Shane had arrived to Cinnabar Island, the steaming hot city in southwestern Kanto. The reason why it was steaming hot wasn't because of hot, naked ladies. If only. There wasn't even a nude beach! Instead, there was a large volcano, taking up most of the space on the island. Shane wanted to keep his distance, but unfortunately, the Cinnabar Gym was located _inside_ the volcano. What kind of nutjob was running this place?

However, Shane had the perfect chance of getting into the gym now. Previously, Blaine, the Gym Leader and an avid fan of puzzles and quizzes had a challenge issued to those who wished to battle him: they had to crawl through the abandoned laboratory, in search of the 'secret key' which would grant them entrance to the gym. However, due to the numerous renovations done in Kanto, the challenge has been removed. So, Shane decided to step into the gym. The idea of a gym being inside a volcano got stupider to him every moment, as Shane walked through the tunnels carved inside the volcano. Finally, however, he entered Blaine's chamber.

"Halt!" he heard Blaine say.

As Shane got a closer look at Blaine, he was able to identify him. Blaine was an old, bald man with stylish sunglasses and a lab coat, his most recognizable feature being his thick beard and moustache. Even Shane could realize, due to the gym being inside a volcano and the numerous fire-related puns, that Blaine was a fire-type expert.

"Stop!" Blaine said. "He who'd wish to challenge me, must answer me these questions three, 'ere the Volcanobadge he see!"This little limerick made no sense to Shane, so he decided to cut right into the chase.

"Uh, you are Blaine, right?" he asked.

"Yes, I'm Blaine" the gym leader replied. "Now, question one: have you, or have you not bought and/or contemplated on buying a timeshare from the fabulous Cinnabar Island?"

"What?!"

"Partial credit! Question number two: would you describe your time spent on Cinnabar island either a) 'pleasant', b) 'extremely pleasant' or c) 'not enough seagulls for my preference'?"

"Uh…" Shane said, wondering what to answer. "I'll guess I'll have to go with-"

"Correct!" Blaine exclaimed enthusiastically. "Now, question number three: why are we here?"

"Well, that depends on whether we're all just a part of God's big plan or is our existence carefully calculated by the universe and the higher powers in charge of it-"

"WRONG!" Blaine screamed. "Nevertheless, since I'm incredibly bored here, I might as well battle you. HA HA HAA!"

"Uh, are you sure you're alright?"

"Quite fine. Let us begin! I hope you brought some burn heals!"

Blaine then started the battle, announcing the rules rather cordially, telling that the battle would be one-on-one. Blaine chose Magmar, a humanoid Pokémon that seemed to be composed entirely out of fire. Shane decided to go with Swirly, his trusty Poliwag, seeing as even he could figure out that water beats fire.

"OK, Swirly!" Shane said. "Let's end this so I can get out of here! Use Bubblebeam!"Swirly started spitting out bubbles in rapid succession, but Magmar's body heat was so intense that the bubbles merely evaporated as they approached it.

"Nice try, but now it's our turn!" Blaine laughed. "Magmar, use Smokescreen!"Magmar spit out a cloud of black smoke that covered the entire battlefield. As Shane struggled to see anything, he could hear Blaine ordering Magmar to use Fire Punch, and the smoke cleared out just in time for Shane to see Magmar punching Swirly away.

"Come on, Swirly!" Shane said. "You can do it! Oh, Lord, I need some completely unrealistic but still believable plot twist to help me out now!"

One should be careful what they wish for, as just as Shane had finished talking, Swirly started to glow. As Blaine and Magmar stood there, looking surprised, Shane's trusty Poliwag evolved in front of his very eyes, into a Poliwhirl. Now that Swirly was a Poliwhirl, Shane knew he had his chance. Shane ordered Poliwhirl to use Seismic Toss, enabling it to grab Magmar by it's leg and swing it around, throwing it to the wall of the volcano. Finally, Poliwhirl finished its victory by using Water Gun, finally dousing Magmar's flames.

"OK! OK! You won!

"Blaine was apparently not happy about losing, but he reluctantly offered Shane the Volcanobadge anyway. Without bothering to say anything more, Shane left the gym, holding the Volcanobadge high in the air to make sure everyone on the island could see it. Unfortunately, it attracted the interest of a certain someone, instead.

"Shane!" the someone shouted from a distance. "Hey! Shane!"

"Please, God, don't let it be him…"

But it was him, Timmy, who approached Shane, looking cheery and stupid once again, not being able to take a hint. Being as generally nice as Shane was, he was unable to just run away, and he was supposed to head towards the Pokémon Center anyway.

"Shane!" Timmy panted, after having reached Shane. "Pleasure seeing you here."

"Uh, likewise" Shane said politely. "Weren't you working at the Volunteer House."

"Oh yeah… Well, the thing is, they needed someone to deliver a box of red herrings to Cinnabar Island, and then they told me to take a vacation. They said they'd call me once they have more work!"

"I'm sure they will" Shane said.

"Anyway, what's up with you?" Timmy inquired. "You got a Volcanobadge! Are you thinking of entering to the Pokémon League?"

Shane delved into his thoughts. The Pokémon League, huh? He only had three badges and he was a beginner anyway, but on the other hand, that punk-ass kid Red from Pallet Town won the Pokémon League almost three years prior, and he had only been on his journey for about a year or so. Then, for some reason, Red gave up his Champion status, and Lance was made the new Champion… That's it! If Shane won everyone at the Pokémon League, including the Elite Four, Shane would get face to face with Lance. Then, he could challenge him to a battle and win. That way, he would definitely win Lance's respect and be accepted to the Legendary Society.

After ten minutes of complete silence, Shane finally composed a reply:

"Yeah, maybe I am going to enter."

"That's cool! I'm entering too!"

"Oh, well, in that case, I'll have to reconsider…"

"Worrying about losing to me, are you, my friend? Well, anyhow, enough of this chit-chat, let's get to the Pokémon Center."

Timmy cheerfully entered the Pokémon Center and Shane followed suit. But as they had only taken a few steps, Shane noticed another familiar face: Leaf, who was getting her Pokémon from the nurse. Leaf noticed Shane, waved and approached him, only to suddenly stop. Timmy, who had also seen Leaf, had a strange look on his face.

"Leaf," he said.

"Timmy," she replied, with a similar, tense voice.

"Oh, you two know each other?" Shane said, suddenly happy of the situation. "Well, that clears things up. You can talk with each other and I can just go away, and-"

"Yes, we know each other all right." Leaf grumbled, while glaring at Timmy. "We used to go out. Then we broke up, not thanks to me."

"Not thanks to you?" Timmy snarled with an uncharacteristically angry tone. "Because of you, our relationship crumbled. It was you who caused all the tension. Every time I saw you in Pewter, I felt like blowing my brains out."

"You wouldn't have a gun with you now, Timmy?" Shane asked, but neither of the two could hear him.

"You know what, Shane?" Leaf said. "It would be nice to chat and all, but I can't stand to be around this loser!"

"Hah! Loser is what loser does… or something…" Timmy said. "You don't have to stand me much longer. I'm leaving. I got badges to earn. Come on, Shane."

"Screw you, Timmy, I'm not going anywhere."

"So, it has come down to this, huh?" Timmy grumbled. "My best friend, betraying me over some girl… you two deserve each other!"

"What are you smoking, man?!" Shane said. "Best friend?! Besides, I don't even like her!"

"Excuse me?"

"Please, Leaf, we're trying to have a conversation here!"

After Shane's last phrase, both Leaf and Timmy left, walking angrily to the opposite directions. Shane couldn't be more relieved: now he had more time to be alone with his thoughts. Since he had nothing to think about, however, he decided to open his log and write something, when he suddenly heard a whisper.

"Psst!"

"Who's there? Don't come any closer! I'm armed! I'll scream 'rape'!"

"It's me, Blaine" the whisperer said. "Come on, I need to talk to you. Follow me!"

Seeing how incredibly smart it was to follow creepy old men into places, Shane decided to do so. Blaine walked out of the Pokémon Center's door and towards the Pokémon Laboratory, a fancy, modern building that, along with Professor Oak and Saffron City's Silph Co, was the leading representative of science in Kanto. As soon as Shane and Blaine had entered the lab, Blaine turned towards Shane.

"Listen carefully. I know I may have pretended to be crazy during our battle, but that's because they're listening to me all the time, in my own gym!"

"What? Who's 'they'?"

Blaine didn't reply, simply signaled Shane to follow him through the lab's shiny corridors, and Shane did so. After walking for a while, Blaine entered a mysterious-looking room and dragged Shane along with him.

"You seem like a trustworthy guy" Blaine said. "I should know that, as I'm real good with people. EXCEPT THOSE WHO KEEP WATCHING ME! Anyway, I'm sure they have bugged my gym, but they can't eavesdrop me in the lab, the security is _way_ too tight. Of course, one of the security guards could be among them, so we won't be taking any risks. Lock the door!"

Shane did as ordered, but he was slightly scared by Blaine's rambling.

"Earlier this week, I accessed Team Rocket's secret website. They had posted a picture of an 'undesirable' who they wanted to 'dispose of'. In layman's terms, they gonna bust a cap in your ass!"

"Oh," Shane said, only slightly surprised by this.

"Yes, indeed, the picture was of you, in case you didn't get that. After accepting Nigel's friend request on Facebook, I hacked into his personal files and I finally realized what they're doing. They want Mewtwo!"

"What's that?"

"Well, tell me this. Have you heard of the legendary Pokémon called Mew?"

"Mew? Nah. Show me!" Shane said, and Blaine showed Shane an artist's impression of Mew, resembling a floating, pink cat-like creature with an enormous-

"That's a tail!" Blaine said.

"Right, right. So what about Mew?"

"Oh, this story takes me back" Blaine said, and began telling: "About ten years ago, me, my friend Dr. Fuji and Fuji's son, Fuji JR (who I will refer to as 'JR' from now on), were still running this laboratory. It was around that time that Giovanni, the new leader of Team Rocket, contacted us, wanting to assemble a crew that would help him find the legendary Pokémon Mew. He gave us no reasons, but he donated a whopping amount of money and also supported the lab financially. Not only that, but Fuji, the lab's administrator, accepted the offer mainly because his son was so interested in Mew."

"For approximately five years, the crew searched all around the world, but found nothing. Then, finally, JR found a bone-like artifact that could be Mew's fossil, and we began to be convinced that Mew was extinct. Giovanni was furious, but he devised an alternate plan, telling us to use the DNA from the fossil to resurrect Mew, or better yet, create a Pokémon similar to Mew, but even mightier in strength. For a year, JR and his science team conducted various experiments, but finally, he got results. Mewtwo was born. Giovanni was grateful, but we had underestimated Mewtwo's power. Not wanting to become Giovanni's slave, Mewtwo destroyed the lab, killing JR in the process, and escaped to parts unknown. Giovanni tried to search for it, unsuccessfully."

"So, another lab was built, being the one you are standing inside, but Fuji never got over the death of his son. He moved away and disappeared, while I decided to resign. I became Cinnabar's Gym Leader. The idea of Mewtwo, a thing I helped creating, still running rampant horrifies me. This is where you come in.""Me?""A few months ago, I heard news that a mystical Pokémon had been killing people, first in Sinnoh, at Route 224, and quite recently, four people were killed inside Mt. Mortar in Johto. I fear Mewtwo might be behind that. I can't leave the island and abandon my gym, but _you_ can."

"What?!"

"You heard me, Shane. You have to find out where Mewtwo is. It is important, as I feel that Team Rocket is after it. Here, use this when you find it."Blaine handed Shane a special kind of Poké Ball: it was blue with red markings in it, and the letter 'M' printed into it.

"Now I want you to be very, very, very careful with this thing. Don't use it to catch any Pokémon besides Mewtwo. That's the only thing that can contain it safely and our only hope of capturing Mewtwo. If, and when, you find Mewtwo, use it. Don't hesitate or waste time, just throw the ball at Mewtwo and pray that it'll reach the target."

"Wow… so this ball can catch any Pokémon? Without fail? Superb…"

"Now, we're on a tight schedule here. Good luck, friend, and remember this. They will always be watching!"

"Wait, by 'they' do you mean Team Rocket?"

"Team Rocket? No, no, no. I'm talking about something even more sinister, but certainly in co-operation with Team Rocket. I wish I could say who I mean, but I think it's safer if you don't know. Godspeed, Shane. Do not believe what they tell you, don't talk to strangers, and don't eat at McDonalds or KFC!"

"But I like food!"

"NO! You can't eat there. They're controlling the food there. I swear, I've been in a place like that, and the IQ points of those eating dropped before my very eyes, turning them into staring, slack-jawed zombies."

"I hear you. Don't worry, Blaine. As soon as I hear something, I'll call you."

Shane released Shrew from its Poké Ball, introduced it to Blaine and then began to leave.

"Just so you know, me and Shrew won't rest before we find Mewtwo" Shane said. "Now let's get something to eat!"


	7. The Road to Victory

**Chapter Seven: _The Road to Victory_**

August 2nd: "_Ah, sweet, sweet land. After a painstakingly long ferry ride, I have arrived to Pallet Town. I'm surprised I've never been here before. Sure, it's small and only has a few houses, but it I have a feeling that something important has happened here. I am ready to tell you, my dear reader, about a quest I have embarked on. Due to my courage and overwhelming charisma, the local conspiracy theorist and overall weirdo Blaine has ordered me to find some sort of genetically enhanced, super-strong Pokémon from somewhere. What is certain that it is possibly in Kanto. I have a strange itch about it._"

August 3rd: "_I spent the night in Professor Oak's laboratory, finally having the chance to meet the Professor. They say he's smart and all, but he seemed awfully nerdy to me. He spent about two hours explaining me something that I could barely understand, but I wasn't really listening to him either. Just before leaving today, a hysterical woman stopped me, trying to talk me about her son who had been missing for almost three years. For some reason, I promised her that I would find the son, even though I have no intention to do so. Sort out your own problems, damn it! Currently, I'm walking towards Viridian City to visit my hometown. Strangely enough, just after leaving Pallet, I saw something running at incredible speed. I'm not sure if it was a Pokémon or a bullet train or something, but it seemed to be all blue and glittering. Maybe it was a-_

"LOOK OUT! LOOK OUT, YOU IDIOT!"

After looking in every major direction, Shane finally realized that he was about to be hit by a sports car, driven by a reckless driver. Shane was so deep in his thoughts that he didn't hear the car approach him, so he didn't have time to dodge. The driver hit the breaks and it stopped right in front of Shane, nevertheless packing enough power to knock Shane to the ground. The driver, dressed in a strange outfit, looking like some sort of magician, hopped out, preparing to rant at Shane.

"What were you doing in the middle of the driveway, fool!" the driver said.

"Yes, mother… I would also like some pancake, some syrup, some bacon and eggs, a croissant and maybe some-"

"Oh, come on!" the driver said. "Stop pretending that you went nuts because I slightly touched you with my awesome car. You better hope it has no dents!"

Shane slowly got up and shook the dirt off his clothes. The driver checked his car, and seemed to calm down a little when he saw that there were no dents - at least not any new ones.

"Who are you?" the driver asked in a rather rude manner.

"I'm Herb, short for Herbert Q. Awesome" Shane said. "You?"

"My name is Eusine" the driver said, not bothering to shake hands with Shane. "It's _interesting_ to meet you, Herb, if that is your real name."

"Well, it's not" Shane replied. "It's Silas Stephens, actually, but my friends call me Shane."

"I shall call you Silas, then" Eusine said. "Anyway, if you'll excuse me, I have no time to waste. I'm chasing after Suicune."

"What's Suicune?" Shane asked.

Eusine purposefully looked annoyed by this question, but in reality, he was happy to receive an opportunity to talk about Suicune.

"It's a legendary Pokémon" he said with a dreamy look on his face. "You can't imagine what it looks like, its serene, blue body glistering in the air as it speeds through roads, mountains, forests and even on water."

"Wait, it's blue and glittering?" Shane asked. "If that's the case, I just saw it. It was heading west!"

"Don't be ridiculous, Silas!" Eusine said, not believing Shane at all. "I have spent my whole life searching the magnificent creature and yet I have only seen it in pictures, and now you claim to have seen it even before hearing about it? I laugh at you. Ha!"

"Don't get me wrong, man, I mean no offense" Shane said rather apologetically. "You have a great car and all, but if Suicune is like you described, you can't reach it anymore. What do you say if you'd drive to Viridian City? I need to challenge the local Gym Leader, as I have just heard there was a Gym, which seems weird, since I have lived in the city for almost twenty-five years."

"As repulsive as the idea of traveling with you sounds," Eusine said. "I would like to take a break from the chase. All right then, hop on. But try not to touch the car with your hands, please!"

While the walk towards Viridian would have probably taken all day, Shane arrived to the Viridian Gym in record time thanks to Eusine's car. He decided not to waste any time by bothering to visit his parents or Ferguson's place or anything, so he rushed straight to the gym. Eusine accompanied him, as he was rather interested in seeing the place. Shane tended to notice, however, that Eusine kept a distance to Shane and acted like he didn't know Shane.

Shane and Eusine walked to an observation platform, witnessing a trainer defeating Blue, the Gym Leader of Viridian City. Blue was considered the toughest to beat, for various reasons. First of all, they say that he used to be the Kanto Champion, but lost to Red. Second of all, Blue did not have a type preference, but rather, he battled with all sorts of Pokémon. Despite this, the trainer who battled against him did quite well, and to deliver the final blow, the trainer used his Magmar to defeat Blue's Pokémon, a Fire-type and the evolved form of Growlithe, Arcanine, an impressive, orange, wolf-like thing.

"You're good, challenger!" Blue said to the trainer, whose face was obscured by a shadow. "Take the Earthbadge!"

"Thanks," said the challenger, and Shane recognized the annoying voice.

"In fact, you were so good that my Pokémon need some serious rest. I'm calling off battles for today!"

Shane was infuriated as he witnessed none other than Damien Zachowski leaving the gym, so proud of his victory that he didn't seem to notice Shane. Once again, Damien had beat him to it, taking away his chance of challenging Blue.

"Why you stupid motherf-"

"Hey, hey, calm down" Eusine said. "There shall be no cursing in the presence of the great Eusine."

"Shut up!" Shane snapped. "Screw this! I'm not going to even try to get any more badges. I'm going straight the Pokémon League. I want to defeat Damien and humiliate him in front of a huge crowd!"

"I like your attitude" Eusine said. "Come on! I know how we can get to the Indigo Plateau in no time. We don't even have to worry about that stupid Victory Road!"

"Thanks, Eusine! If you weren't so annoying and flashy, I would actually like you!"

Shane and Eusine hopped into Eusine's car, and Shane could barely fasten his seatbelt when Eusine drove off, speeding rather recklessly through the route leading towards the Pokémon League, stationed in Indigo Plateau. This drive took a little longer, but not more than a mere two hours. Eusine seemed to be constantly speeding, violating all possible speed limits and almost killing pedestrians, but at least he kept his eye on the road. Finally, the duo arrived to their destination, and Shane jumped out of the car. As Shane was walking towards the Pokémon League HQ, he was stopped by a rude gatekeeper.

"STOP!" the gatekeeper yelled. "Before you enter this HQ, preserved for the finest trainers, let me see your eight badges of Kanto!"

"Sure, why not" Shane said whilst digging out the badges from his pockets. "But instead of 'eight badges of Kanto', I call them my 'three badges of Kanto'. Look!"

The gatekeeper glanced at Shane's three badges and looked confused for a while, before realizing that Shane was serious.

"That's not enough! You need eight badges to compete in the Pokémon League, it's in the effing rules! Get out of my sight!"

"Yeah, yeah…" Shane grunted, and Shane and Eusine returned to the car. "Fascist" Shane muttered under his breath, before leaving.

Quite anti-climactic, really.

So, the end was in sight. Eusine drove Shane back to Viridian, where Shane returned home. His parents were not too keen on seeing Shane returning, as they figured that he had gotten his own place by now, but were too benign to refuse Shane from coming. While the idea of Leaf, Timmy and Damien competing in the Pokémon League wasn't the nicest one, he decided to ignore this. He was still puzzled by one thing: what caused all the animosity between Timmy and Leaf? It was probably too late to ask now, seeing as they were quite angry at Shane.

About a week later, the Pokémon League Tournament had advanced to the finals. Shane listened to the radio intently, wanting to catch familiar names, but found out that Damien, Timmy and Leaf had all dropped out during the preliminaries. Shane listened to the radio for the duration of the finals, and it seemed that Pete Pebbleman, a young trainer from Vermilion City, had won the match. As some of the less fortunate competitors were interviewed, Shane found out that Damien had lost to Pebbleman during the prelims.

For the next two months, Shane searched around Kanto for clues about Mewtwo. He had a driver's license, even though the last time he drove was a car was three years ago - when he first got his license. So, after wrecking a few rented cars, he finally managed to stay on the road and drive around Kanto, searching for Mewtwo, but without effort.

Eventually, he concluded that he had checked out every major location in Kanto. He even searched through the Seafoam Islands and the Victory Road, unable to find Mewtwo, or Articuno and Moltres for that matter. Eventually, there was only one location where Mewtwo could hide: the Cerulean Cave, a dangerous cave near Cerulean City, filled with powerful Pokémon. Steve had already tried to enter it earlier, but it was always guarded, as only highly skilled trainers were granted access.

At first, he had only minor suspicions that Mewtwo was in the cave, but they were soon confirmed. During a cold October night, he received an email from Ferguson, where his friend told mostly normal stuff about how his life had been and how Shane's Staryu was doing (he had no nickname for it yet). In the email, Ferguson mentioned seeing some strange activity near the Cerulean Cave, which convinced him that Team Rocket were after Mewtwo, and somehow, they knew where it was. So, Shane decided to call for some backup. Since he didn't have any friends, he resorted to the next best thing.

"Hello, Blaine? It's Shane. I think I know where Mewtwo is. Come and pick me up as soon as you can!"


	8. Berserk Gene

**Chapter Eight: **_**Berserk Gene**_

October 10th: "_This is it. I'm currently sitting in Blaine's car, heading towards Cerulean City. I think making friends with this guy was a big mistake. Sure, he's generally nice and all, but he keeps making up this stupid stuff, mostly stories about how he once had a beer-chugging contest with Moltres. I'm still excited that I'm going to get a first real entry to my clipbook. Oh crap, we're here. Bye!"_

Shane and Blaine had arrived to the Cerulean Cave, and they immediately saw that something was wrong: the guard, who normally stood in front of the cave 24/7, was now gone. Since it was midnight already, the whole place was quiet, but Shane had a bad feeling that there was some unsavory activity inside. Shane and Blaine sneaked inside, and Shane prepared to turn on his flashlight - only to see that it was entirely unnecessary, seeing as the whole cave was lit up, indicating that Team Rocket was indeed there.

"We got to be careful with these cats" Shane reminded Blaine. "At any given moment, they could pop up behind you."

Shane and Blaine glanced each other, then looked behind them, as if expecting someone to turn up. Fortunately, there was no one behind them. So, they turned back, only to be face to face with none other than Nigel and a very large group of Rocket Grunts.

"I knew it!" Nigel said. "I knew you were going to come here! You have been a thorn on my back for too long, Shane!"

"What the hell? I only messed up your operations once, how can I-"

"And you, Blaine!" Nigel interrupted. "Our leader had time to tell plenty of stories about you. Too bad no one will be telling stories about you anymore. Because you're going to be killed. Here. By us."

"Enough of this crap!" Blaine said. "You, Shane, get out of here. I'll stall them or something. Ninetales, go!"

Blaine threw a Poké Ball in front of Nigel and company, and out came Ninetales, Vulpix's evolved form, a glorious, fire-spewing fox-like Pokémon with nine tails and golden fur. Shane decided to do as Blaine told and run, whilst Ninetales started battling against Nigel's Machoke. The Rocket Grunts weren't into fair play, however, so they decided help their leader by throwing several more Poké Balls to the arena, so Blaine had to use his Magmar to help battle them. Shane ran further into the cave, but whilst running, he briefly looked behind, completely missing a huge hole on the floor. Shane fell through and splashed into water, now drifting in an underground river. Not to mention, there was a small boat with a Rocket Grunt in it, floating just next to him, and several more advancing from behind.

"Damn it… Zuba! Go!" Shane gurgled, while struggling to keep himself on the surface.

Shane then released Zuba from its Poké Ball, and decided to take advantage of his Pokémon; Zuba had just evolved into a Golbat few years prior, the same evolution also happening to Droid, which had evolved into a Magneton, conveniently off-screen. As Zuba popped out of its Poké Ball, Shane grabbed its leg, and the Golbat struggled to drag Shane with it. Next, Shane released Droid from its ball, and the Magneton immediately understood Shane's orders, even though he gasped them under his breatht and kept coughing water out of his lungs. Droid used Thunderbolt to shock the Rocket boat nearby, knocking the Rocket Grunt off. Shane quickly climbed into the boat and pulled Zuba and Droid with him. It was only then when he realized that he had no paddle: the Grunt dropped it while falling.

"You have got to be kidding me!" Shane sighed, taking out another Poké Ball.

He threw another Poké Ball, Swirly's. Shane told it to get behind the boat and push it, while he ordered Zuba to pull the boat. With this, the boat moved record speed, but the other Rocket boats were still gaining on them. Shane used his hands to paddle in order to speed up the boat, then released Shrew from its ball, telling it to do the same thing. With Droid thunderbolting Rocket Grunts into oblivion, managing to completely sink one of the boats. After speeding in the underground river for several minutes, he heard Shrew making a strange noise.

"What is it, boy?" Shane asked.

Shrew was pointing to the ceiling: another hole, similar to the one Shane dropped into, was only about a dozen yards away. Shane quickly told his Poliwhirl to use Ice Punch on the wall of the cave, creating an icy block in the middle of the river. He then swiftly recalled Swirly, grabbed Shrew to his armpit and told Droid and Zuba to carry him up, through the hole. As he did so, he could hear the Rocket Grunts crashing into the ice block. By the time they could get it out of the way, Shane would be long gone. Just to be on the safe side, Shane recalled Droid and Zuba, then, together with Shrew, grabbed a large rock and used it to cover the hole they used to enter.

After the hole was covered, the cave went pitch-dark, so Shane swiftly lit his flashlight. Once he had accidentally scared Shrew by making a ghostly face by holding the flashlight under is head, he started to peruse around the cave. There was no doubt that Mewtwo was in there; Shane could feel it. Not only that, but something must have caused the holes in the river tunnel. The Rocket Grunts probably knew that too, but Shane didn't have to worry about them anymore. Unfortunately, while Shane might had been a curious fellow, always interested in legendary Pokémon, he was also a pathetic coward, so the darkness and the complete silence in the cave quickly got the best of him.

"Uh, Shrew? Maybe we should get out of here" he suggested. "It was wrong to think that Mewtwo could be in some dark, creepy cave. Maybe we should heard to a more intelligent location… like Aruba. Or Hawaii. Wait a minute…"

Whilst waving his flashlight around, Shane noticed something purplish near a rock. He was about to light the target again, but that soon proved to be unnecessary, as all of the sudden, the whole cave was illuminated by a ghostly, purple light.

"Jesus!" he screamed, as the next thing he saw was about to scare him to death.

Only a few feet away from him, standing on a nearby ledge, was the very creature he had arrived to capture: Mewtwo. While Mewtwo's physique was mostly cat-like, most noticeable in the tail and the ears, Mewtwo was a whole lot more intimidating than that. Its color was a shade of purple, and its narrow eyes seemed to constantly stare at Shane. At first, it made absolutely no moves. It didn't make any sounds either, nor did it talk, but that made sense. After all, Pokémon didn't talk, except in some horrible, low-budget movies. After staring at Shane for a couple of hours, Mewtwo suddenly rose from the ledge, and used its psychic powers to float towards Shane, descending to his level, now being only a few feet away. Whilst using its psychic powers, Mewtwo's eyes started glowing, turning completely blue.

Shane and Shrew, obviously scared by this, slowly backed away from Mewtwo, but they soon stopped, fearing it so much that they didn't dare to escape, knowing that it would probably blast some sort of beam at their backs. After a moment of silence, Shane decided to try and talk to Mewtwo, but before staring to talk, Shane quickly passed Shrew a camera, whispering it to take a picture of Mewtwo as soon as it could.

"Mewtwo? Is it? Well, I guess you are… Listen, I know you can't talk to me, and I'm not sure if you understand me, but I know that you probably have a traumatic past or something. Let's just sort it out, man to genetically enhanced super weapon. Huh?"

The Pokémon didn't reply, but it did something else. A blue glow suddenly appeared in its paws. Shane realized that it was most likely about to attack.

"Now, I don't want to do this!" Shane stated, digging the Master Ball from his pocket. "But I need to catch you. I'm sure you will be released sooner or later, but you have stirred up the hive. You've killed innocent people, or so I've been told, so naturally, I believed that. No hard feelings. You know, it would make my life easier if you would just get into this ball yourself or something."

But Mewtwo had no intention doing so. Shane realized this in a split-second, so without hesitation, he took the Master Ball and chucked it towards Mewtwo with full force. Shane briefly expected to capture the Pokémon, but as the Master Ball drew closer, an immense, blue force field appeared around Mewtwo, knocking the Master Ball back to Shane, almost hitting him to the head.

"So, not going down without a fight, are you? Fine with me! Shrew, get him!"

But Shrew was, once again, cowering behind Shane, covering its eyes with its paws, looking like it would have preferred being anywhere else but there. Shane could understand it, but fortunately, he had stronger, more courageous Pokémon with him.

"No worries. This shouldn't take long. I'm using the strongest Pokémon in my arsenal! Droid, go!"

Shane threw Droid's Poké Ball to the ground, and the Magneton was immediately ready to battle, its three eyes glaring at Mewtwo. As ordered by Shane, Droid struck Mewtwo with a Thunderbolt, but the Pokémon merely activated the energy field around it, causing the attack to ricochet away. Droid tried and tried, but it wasn't strong enough to deal a blow to knock Mewtwo out. Now, it was Mewtwo's turn to attack, so it used its powers to create a bright, blue ball, which it then launched towards Droid. The ball wasn't large, but it hit Droid with immense speed and accuracy, knocking it to the ground, rendering it unable to battle.

"Holy hell" Shane said. "What kind of move was that? I sure hope I would have a PokéDex to conveniently explain every minor detail to me. Oh well, I'm sure I could think of a snazzy name for it. Let's see… Mewtwo used some sort of 'aura' to use the move, and it was a 'sphere'… I'll call it: 'Blue Ball of Awesomeness!' OK, Swirly, your turn!"

Shane sent his Poliwhirl to battle, but unfortunately, it didn't stand much of a chance either. Despite trying to get to close to Mewtwo, it was constantly pushed back, and eventually, by using its most powerful move, Psychic, Mewtwo lifted Swirly into the air and blasted it to the wall. Zuba, Shane's Golbat, didn't fare too well either, as it couldn't deliver a good blow, and it was eventually knocked out by Mewtwo's Shadow Ball. Mewtwo's attacks and possibly the battle between Blaine and the Rockets caused the cave to quake violently, and Shane was constantly afraid that it might collapse. Before Shane realized it, he was out of Pokémon.

"Damn, I can see why Team Rocket is after this thing…" Shane said. "How the hell am I going to catch it?"

Luckily, he didn't have to seek his answer far. Shrew, apparently tired of cowering behind Shane, took action and stepped towards Mewtwo.

"You?" Shane laughed, unconvinced by Shrew's sudden bravery. "No offense, Shrew, but you'll be torn to shreds! You don't have to prove me anything!"

But Shrew wanted to do so. Shane realized that Shrew wanted to help Shane, and he was certainly not going ignore this. Instead, the two devised a plan together. Just as Mewtwo looked as it was about to leave, Shrew ran straight towards it, prompting Mewtwo to attack with Shadow Ball. Shane briefly closed his eyes to avoid looking, but was surprised that the Shadow Ball missed. Shrew was small, but without a doubt, it was fast, and agile. As Shrew approached Mewtwo, dodging the attacks Mewtwo tried to throw at it, Shane sneaked around the battlefield, approaching Mewtwo from behind, but kept his distance, knowing that it would sense his presence if he got too close. Then, just as Shrew was about to attack Mewtwo with Rollout, Mewtwo used Psychic, stopping Shrew mid-air, then launching it back where it came from. At the very same moment, Mewtwo was focused on its target, so Shane grabbed the Master Ball and threw it at Mewtwo. Just as it was about to turn, the ball hit the back of its head, finally capturing the dangerous Pokémon. It tried to struggle, but the Master Ball could capture anything, completely without fail, trapping Mewtwo inside it. His hands shaking from the excitement from the tension, Shane carefully picked up the ball, placing it in his pocket.

"Shrew!" he yelled, suddenly remembering the poor Pokémon. "Are you OK?"

Shane ran to his Sandshrew, which lay on the cavern floor, having been knocked to a wall. He carefully picked his Pokémon up, briefly thinking that the worst might have happened, when Shrew suddenly opened its eyes. Shane was so happy that he could cry, but deciding to keep his manhood, he preferred to give Shrew a _manly_ hug. During the unnecessary long hug, Shane realized something; Mewtwo was captured, but something still emitted light into the cavern. Shane and Shrew turned around to look at the ledge where Mewtwo stood previously.

Instead of a Pokémon, a man stood on the ledge. He was quite tall and rugged, and didn't seem to be a Rocket, as Shane had never seen him before and certainly did not see him with Nigel. Not only that, but unlike the other Grunts, the man was very well dressed, donning a clean, expensive-looking suit. Otherwise, the man looked extremely suave in every way, but Shane could not see his face, as it was obscured by a shadow. Before Shane could ask anything, the man began talking.

"Excellent job, friend" the man said. "I witnessed your battle against the mighty Mewtwo. No one has ever got as close to it as you did!"

"Thanks, I guess…" Shane said. "Who are you again?"

"It does not matter, but for the time being, you can call me Giovanni. I'm sure you have heard of me, but rest assured, but my disappearance from public eye was necessary. Judging by the fact that you came here with Blaine, you have most likely heard _his _version of the events behind Mewtwo's creation. I had excellent reasons for its creations, far more complicated for someone like to him to understand."

Giovanni took a few steps closer, but still making sure that Shane could not see his face. Now that Shane looked closer, he clearly saw a Persian, a cat-like Pokémon with a jewel on its forehead, standing next to Giovanni.

"Now, then. I have watched you for a while, and I can clearly tell that you seem to have a great need of belonging to a group. An important group, am I right? You wish to experience great adventures and find out the secrets behind legendary Pokémon. That's why you're here, isn't it?"

"Wow, that was quite accurate" Shane said. "What's the catch? I know you used to be Team Rocket's leader, so I'm sure you understand if I don't immediately trust you."

"My request is of simple nature" Giovanni said with a poetical tone. "You are in possession of Mewtwo, inside the Master Ball, the same one I tried to acquire almost three years ago. Please, hand it over to me. If you do that, you and I can join together with Mewtwo and become an unstoppable team. We would solve the mysteries of the universe, and once and for all, we'd defeat Team Rocket together!"

Shane contemplated on those words. This was his big chance, the one he had been waiting for. He had to grasp this opportunity, because he most likely was unable to prove himself for the snobs at the Legendary Society. Still… something inside him, possibly a conscience or something like that was struggling, and eventually, Shane had to refuse Giovanni's request:

"Sorry… but the answer is 'no'!"

"I'm sorry to hear that" Giovanni said nonchalantly. "Unfortunately, I will have to take the ball from you by force. My apologies!"

Shane was expecting an attack, and so was Shrew, who, despite being tired from his battle against Mewtwo, stood in front of Shane, protecting him. Giovanni took four Poké Balls from his waist, and threw them at Shane's feet. All of the sudden, Shane was surrounded by four extremely powerful Pokémon: a Golem, a Kingler, a Machamp and a Rhydon, ready to attack him. As everything seemed hopeless, something surprising happened.

It happened so fast that Shane couldn't notice: something pink suddenly flew in sight, and before Shane could catch a good glimpse of it, he simply disappeared, just as the cave began collapsing.

"Damn it! Fall back!" Giovanni cursed, recalling his Pokémon and running away.

At the exact same time, Blaine's Pokémon had just been defeated by Nigel and three Rocket Grunts. As Nigel was about to pull out his gun to finish Blaine off, the same pink creature flew into view, and in a matter of seconds, Blaine was teleported away too. Before Nigel and his cronies could notice, heavy rocks started falling out of the ceiling, completely crushing the Rockets, and eventually, the entire Cerulean Cave collapsed, trapping the Rockets inside for good.

Hours later, Shane woke up in his newfound location. For reasons unbeknownst to him, he had been sleeping in a comfy bed. For a moment, he thought that he had wound up in another 'it was all a dream'-plotline, but as he looked around, he saw Blaine nearby, talking to someone quite familiar: Mr. Fuji, apparently a good friend of Blaine's. Shane had so many questions to ask about his sudden teleportation and Mr. Fuji's involvement in the whole affair, but on the other hand, seeing Blaine and Mr. Fuji hugging each other, reunited again after a long hiatus, made him happy enough. Questions would wait for a better day. After returning to bed and waking up Shrew, then recalling it, Shane quietly sneaked away, deciding to head back home. As he grabbed his jacket, he noticed that the Master Ball, with Mewtwo inside, was still in his pocket. Being as careful and thoughtful as he was, he left the Master Ball on the nearest table, certain that someone would notice it.

But when he left Fuji's house, he felt like an idiot for leaving the most powerful Pokémon on Earth to the care of two old fools. After that, he realized that he was in Lavender Town, and it was three AM and completely dark outside. Nevertheless, having walked the same path before, Shane was certain that he would be able to find his way by merely memorizing the route. In only fifteen minutes, Shane was desperately lost.

He tried to look for landmarks or something like that, but didn't find anything. Hopeless about the situation, he sat down, until his eye caught a strange source of light. It was at the sky, and as Shane looked, he could see something flying on the sky, possibly a bird Pokémon of multiple colors. As Shane looked closer, he could see all the colors of the rainbow, plus a hint of gold. It emitted a very bright light that could be seen even from a distance. Unable to recognize the Pokémon, Shane decided to follow it. Shane walked and walked, his eyes glued to the Pokémon, but after walking for hours, the sun was already rising and the Pokémon disappeared from sight.

Just as Shane was about to emit a nasty swear for this, he realized that the Pokémon, whatever it was, had led him to Celadon City, and he was standing right outside the Pokémon Center. Knowing that his Pokémon needed a rest, he entered the Pokémon Center, but right at the door, he bumped into a trio of men.

"Well, well, well. Look what the cat dragged in."

Shane gasped at the sight: he had bumped straight into the thug, Miguel and his two accomplices, Pepe and José. Miguel grinned at Shane, and Shane could feel his bad breath.

"Ew!" he said. "What do you want?"

"We have a bone to pick with you, esé!" Miguel said. "Wait, did I say that right?"

"I thought you were Team Rocket" Shane said. "So why aren't you currently dead at the ruins of the Cerulean Cave?"

"You've got it all wrong, man. We're freelancers. We work for the person who pays the most. It's principles, damn it. But thanks to you, we lost our biggest source of revenue. Ever since we bumped into each other at Mt. Moon, that suit guy, Nigel, paid me to follow you. I was the one who took those pictures of you and put them on the Team Rocket website."

"Damn, that was you? You seriously shouldn't have followed me into the toilet as well!"

"It doesn't matter, _gringo_. You're going to die!"

"Big talk, Miguel, but I doubt you and your compadres are going to cap my sweet ass in the middle of a busy city at morning, with hundreds of people trying to get to work."

"Just watch your back, _amigo_. We'll follow you wherever you go. Well, unless you decide to leave Kanto. You see, to them, I look Iraqi, so they decided to put me n Guantanamo Bay just to be on the safe side, and I've been hiding ever since. But as soon as my numerous angry letters clear out, I'll hunt you down and get my revenge. In the meantime, I have assigned my cousin to follow you, 24/7!"

"Oh no, I'm so scared" Shane said. "Your _cousin_ is going to follow me? You couldn't think of anything less dangerous? And what is it with you Mexicans and your cousins anyway?"

"Shut up! For your information, my cousin is quite persistent. Don't get on his bad side, or you'll regret it! _Vamonos muchachos!_ Let's get out of here!"

With that, Miguel and his crew left. Shane wasn't too intimidated by this, as there was no reason to be scared anyway. Kanto was a big place, Miguel had no idea where he lived and Team Rocket was gone anyway. After Shane had given his Pokémon to the nurse, he decided to sit down and wait, but saw a rather familiar face there, too.

"Eusine? Hey, Eusine!"

Shane saw Eusine, leaning to the counter and reading the 'Douche World'-magazine. Eusine merely acknowledge Shane's presence with a brief nod, and seemed rather displeased when Shane marched up to him to start a conversation.

"What are you doing here? I thought you were chasing Suicune?"

"That's what I am doing, Simon" Eusine said. "I've decided to visit Celadon, however, because this is where I was born. Besides, the Legendary Society sent me here on an important assignment. Oh, that's right. I am a member. Of the LS. I would show you my badge, but I left it in my other pants."

"Hey, I believe ya. You mentioned that about a million times when we last met. That, or I just pictured that in my head. I'm not so sure anymore. Anyway, I actually have a question about legendary Pokémon."

"Shoot."

"Well, just last night, I was desperately lost, hungry and hurt. I'm fine now, not that you bothered to ask. Anyway, I had almost lost all hope, when I saw some strange Pokémon on the sky. I know it wasn't Articuno, Zapdos or Moltres, nor any other normal Pokémon. It was a bird, like a phoenix, I didn't see it to clearly but it shined like gold and I saw all the colors of the rainbow on it."

"Wait a second…"

Eusine grabbed his suitcase and took an old book from it. After browsing through the table of contents, Eusine turned to the right page, then showed it to Shane. As he glanced the book, Shane saw an artist's impression of the exact same Pokémon Shane had seen.

"That's the one!" Shane yelled "What is it?"

"It's called Ho-Oh, but you could have never seen it. That's just a rotten lie, just like that lie you made about seeing Suicune!"

"Well, I did see Suicune… and I did see Ho-Oh on the sky, I swear!"

"Whatever" Eusine said, but nevertheless continued, seeing as boasting about his knowledge was his favorite activity. "Still, if you're so interested in Ho-Oh, I can tell you where it roosts."

"Really? You can?"

"Yep. They say that once every ten years, Ho-Oh returns to the place where it began its worldwide journey: the Tin Tower, located in Ecruteak City, Johto. They say that-"

"Whoa, I heard enough!" Shane said. "And I want to go there! To Johto!"

"Hey, wait, don't get too carried away, I-"

"Enough talking, Eusine. Johto, here I come! Woo!"

After he had started walking to the wrong direction, Shane was stopped by Eusine, who told that walking to Johto would be impossible, or at least, it would take forever. Since Shane didn't have forever, Eusine explained some alternate means of transportation to him. Basically, Shane had two choices. The first was taking the S.S. Aqua, which left next Friday, but the idea of spending two days with fat, smelly sailors made Shane disapprove of the idea. So, Shane decided to take the Magnet Train, an extremely fast way of transportation between Kanto and Johto, which was just completed a few weeks ago. The train left from Saffron City, and it arrived in Goldenrod City, Johto, only a short hike away from Ecruteak City. With that, Shane decided to head towards Saffron.

First, he heard that he would need a rail pass to ride the train, but Shane didn't want to complete a useless and tedious side quest to obtain one, so, instead, he stole one from a little kid standing near the railway station.

Rather conveniently, the Magnet Train was just about to leave, so Shane hopped on board. Since it was still quite early, there were no other passengers, so Shane decided to make a new entry to his log.

October 11th: "_Well, here I am, on my way to Johto to hunt a relatively stupid and unrealistic dream. But hey - that's what dreams are like. I don't think I achieved much in Kanto, seeing as all I got to my clipbook was a Zapdos-related haiku and a blurry picture of Mewtwo._ _But I'm sure that my adventures in Johto will be at least twice as exciting. Besides, I have a pretty solid team of Pokémon: a Sandshrew called Shrew, a Golbat called Zuba, a Poliwhirl called Swirly, a Magneton called Droid and even an unnamed Staryu, currently taken care of by Ferguson. I hope Johto's ready for me - I sure am ready as hell for Johto_, _ready to start a new arc… of my life!"_

_"See you in Johto, bitches!"_


	9. Johto: Now with more characters!

**JOHTO**

**Chapter Nine: **_**Johto - now with more characters!**_

Today, October 11th, was the beginning of a whole new life for Kris Zimmerman. Unable to find a goal in life, Kris, in the age of twenty or something, still lived with her parents in New Bark Town, a boring little town in southeastern Johto. For many months now, Kris had been working as Professor Elm's lab assistant, and while the work was interesting and Elm even paid something, Kris was extremely bored most of the time, as she had already gotten the general idea of catching Pokémon, and yet she still had to catch various Pokémon so that Professor Elm could research them. Mainly, her job involved walking back and forth between New Bark Town and Cherrygrove City. For a year now, Kris had been wanting her own Pokémon, but Elm had already given away three Pokémon, and the next ones wouldn't arrive until later on. It was no wonder that Kris smiled so rarely these days... not that she had been particularly happy in her life previously, either. Let's just say that when Kris was little, her parents moved around a lot... but Kris was always able to find them. Her mother was one of those creepy housewives who pretended that their lives were OK, while in reality, Kris' mom just sat around the house, eating chicken. And the less said about Kris' father, the better... who could blame for being a bit resentful?

About a month prior, a young Pokémon Trainer called Gold began his journey, receiving a Cyndaquil from the Professor. Kris was increasingly jealous, mostly because she knew that she could leave within a month, and because Gold had been interviewed and claimed as the 'hope of New Bark Town', who would bring honor to the town by defeating the Pokémon League. Kris couldn't help but to feel extreme jealousy when Gold got to leave town, while Kris had to scrub the toilets in Professor Elm's lab.

But eventually, the day came, and Kris received her first Pokémon. She had to make a choice between the water-type Pokémon Totodile or the grass-type Chikorita. After careful considering, she chose Totodile, but as soon as she left the lab, she found out that it was a mistake: her Totodile didn't obey her at all, merely kept dancing around and biting random things and people, including the weirdo who offered to show how to catch Pokémon at Route 29, and who was known from peeping outside the houses of New Bark Town anyway.

Kris was not particularly happy about this turn of events, but decided to move along, knowing that she would reach the Pokémon League before Gold would.

**...**

At the exact same time, Shane was arriving to Johto on the Magnet Train. It was still about an hour left before Goldenrod City, and the train was currently on a very tall bridge above Route 46. Shane relaxed, enjoying the view, and the fact that there were no other passengers. Suddenly, the train started to slow down, and before Shane could even begin to wonder the cause, the train stopped. An unclear and fuzzy voice on the intercom then offered an explanation:

"_Dear passengers. We have stopped because of an unidentified obstacle on the tracks. The staff are doing their utmost to clear the obstacle. We apologize for any inconvenience_."

"Oh, great!" Shane said. "I might as well get some fresh air… this could take a while."

Shane stepped out of the train, and for the heck of it, decided to release his four Pokémon from their balls. Shrew, Zuba, Swirly and Droid seemed to be pleased to get some fresh air, and the weather was fine: it was 9 AM, and even though the leaves were falling and turning brown, the sun was still shining and it was even relatively warm outside. As Shane and his Pokémon stretched their limbs and the train staff tried to remove a huge log that had somehow gotten on the tracks, something happened, far below.

A few dozen yards below, at the foot of the rail bridge, a man dressed in a black uniform prepared to install a plastic bomb on the bridge, whilst laughing to himself, assisted by his favorite Pokémon, Ditto, a purple blob that could transform into every other Pokémon if needed. He also received help from his two other Pokémon: a Beedrill, a Weepinbell and a Chikorita who wore a red band on its head to identify it.

"I am grateful for your assistance!" the man said. "Now, back into your balls, everyone, and let the final stage of my masterful plan begin!"

The man recalled his Pokémon, then leaned over to the bomb and prepared to detonate it. This way, he would surely get retribution from all the bad things that had happened to him, and the world would finally believe that Team Rocket reigned supreme.

Up at the bridge, Shane admired the view: Johto sure was a beautiful place. Abandoning all precaution, Shane walked to the edge of the railroad tracks, and, as expected, slipped and fell down the bridge, screaming all the way. His Pokémon noticed this, but there was no way they had time to help him, so they merely watched as Shane kept falling and falling, until he finally landed safely - on a person, the same guy who was about to detonate his bomb and blow the bridge up sky high.

After checking if his vital organs were still in place, Shane got up, and decided to apologize for the person he had almost crushed. Surprisingly, the man who Shane landed on was still OK, but steaming mad that he didn't get to blow up the bridge.

"You fool! You wrecked the master plan of the great Fernando!"

"Who's Fernando?"

"I am! I was about to show the world the glory of Team Rocket and the might of our organization by committing this heinous terrorist act, when you had to fall on me and ruin everything!"

"Hey, I'm sorry. I fell off that bridge, and… Oh, shit! I'll miss the train for sure now! Shrew! Guys! Get down from there! We'll have to continue on foot!"

Back up on the bridge, his Pokémon seemed to understand. Zuba and Droid helped Shrew and Swirly down safely. As they landed, Fernando glanced at Shane's Pokémon with a greedy look on his face. Then he turned to Shane, ready to introduce himself.

"Fernando is my name, and mayhem is game. A proud member of Team Rocket am I, representing it here, in Johto, ready to report to my masters whenever I want to. But, alas, I have said too much. Therefore, I am forced to eliminate you, so-"

When Fernando interrupted his monologue, Shane had already left, along with his Pokémon. Fernando cursed his bad luck, and was even more annoyed when he heard the Magnet Train leave, his attempt of blowing it up failing.

Shane, on the other hand, was completely lost in Johto, but that didn't discourage him. He decided to head south, not for any reason, but he figured that in the south, it would be warmer. What he did not know, however, is that his feet couldn't take much walking anymore. After walking for an eternity, Shane saw someone walking towards him a distance. Shane waved, and the walker waved back. As the person walked towards him, Shane realized that it was a girl: she had dark brown hair and was dressed in a rather casual attire: she wore worn-out jeans, a stained denim jacket and a rather strange hat. In every other aspect, the girl didn't seem to be prom queen material, as she didn't seem to pay too much attention to her looks, clothing or way of walking. As such, it was no surprise that Shane didn't feel much _reactions_ upon seeing her, merely greeted her rather casually:

"Hi!"

"Oh, hello there" the girl said. "You don't happen to be a Pokémon Trainer, would you? What's your name?"

"My name?" Shane repeated. "It's uh… it's… Silas! Silas Stephens, but call me Shane!"

Shane had no idea why he gave his real, embarrassing name, but the girl didn't seem to mind.

"Nice to meet you. I'm Kris. I was just asking, because… well, I am already an experienced battler and on my way to the Pokémon League. I'm merely asking if we could have a practice battle before that?"

"I don't see why not" Shane said. "I should warn you, though. I'm… I mean, I… well, I suck."

"Doesn't matter to me" Kris said, and grabbed a Poké Ball from her pack.

She threw her Poké Ball in front of Shane, releasing her ever-happy Totodile, who kept hopping around. Shane didn't seem to notice this, being merely surprised by the appearance of Totodile, a Pokémon he had never seen or heard of before, but on the other hand, he had only seen Kanto Pokémon prior to this anyway.

"OK, then, whatever you are, prepare to go down!" Shane said. "Shrew! Go!"

Shane went with his Sandshrew, who seemed to be immediately ready to battle after seeing its opponent. As the battle commenced, Kris ordered Totodile to use Leer, but instead of obeying, Totodile merely yawned. Confused by this, Shane nevertheless decided to take advantage of the situation, ordering Shrew to use Slash, which seemed to hurt Totodile. Becoming increasingly angry, Totodile didn't even wait for orders but immediately struck Shrew with Water Gun, but Shane told Shrew to use Defense Curl, blocking out the Water Gun. Next, Shane ordered a Rollout, and Shrew's rock-hard body struck Totodile straight in the jaw, knocking Totodile out.

"Whoa! That was easy!" Shane thought. "But hey," Shane said to Kris. "you still have time to practice your skills before you go to the Pokémon Lea-"

But Kris didn't seem to listen. With a sad look on her face, she recalled her Totodile and sighed. She then turned her back on Shane.

"Hey, don't feel bad. People have lost to me before. At least once" Shane said. "Let me point out the things you went wrong. First of all-"

"SHUT UP!" Kris screamed, prompting Shane to immediately stop talking. "I don't need to know where I went wrong, OK? I'm not an experienced trainer, I only started out today! I can't even control my stupid Totodile…"

"I didn't… I…"

"So, I don't need you, whoever you are, to start acting all high and mighty just for beating a rookie trainer! This is just what my self-esteem needed!"

Kris angrily stormed away, deciding to head back towards New Bark Town and call it quits. But Shane, growing a rather unlikely attraction to this angry lady, decided to follow Kris, much to her annoyance.

"Hey, look, I believe we got off the wrong foot!" he said. "I just arrived here, from Kanto, and my train left without me! I have no idea where I am and… well, I would need someone to guide me to my destination. I was wondering, if you-"

"No!" Kris snapped. "No way! I'm heading back home, to New Bark Town, and I'll die alone and miserable there!"

Even though the mere presence of Shane annoyed Kris right now, Shane didn't want to quit. Partially because he had no place else to go, but also because he could use someone to talk to, instead of traveling all by himself. So, Shane followed Kris all the way to New Bark Town, where Kris stepped into Professor Elm's laboratory. Strangely enough, there was a police car right outside the lab, and Elm was talking to a police officer. As soon as Elm noticed Kris, he rushed towards her.

"Oh, hello Professor Elm" Kris said "I'd like to return-"

"Kris! Kris! You cannot believe what has happened!" Elm panicked. "Oh? I'm sorry, I didn't know you were with your boyfriend…"

"What?" Kris said and glanced at Shane. "He's not my boyfriend! He's not even my friend!"

Professor Elm didn't seem to listen, as he and Shane shook hands.

"My name is Elm, and I'm sure you have heard about the work I have done in the field of Pokémon evolution."

"Uh, yes I have, sure… my name is Handsome, by the way. Handsome B. Einstein."

"No it's not!" Kris said. "Professor, this is Shane. Shane Stephens, who decided to follow me here for some reason."

"Well, you chose the perfect timing. I have been robbed! Do you remember that Chikorita that was left behind when you chose your Totodile? Well, now it's gone! Stolen!"

"By whom?"

"Well, we have only have gathered some identification from professor Elm, here" the police officer said. "Apparently, the thief was some young guy with piercing eyes and bright red hair…"

Kris reminisced. Indeed, she remembered seeing someone like that outside the lab, but she wasn't sure. After she had received Totodile and left the lab, she noticed someone staring into the lab from the outside. When Kris tried to talk to the guy, she was rudely pushed away. Kris decided to ignore that guy, but now that she thought of it, she should have informed Elm about him.

"Well, anyway, thanks for your co-operation, professor" the policeman said and began to leave. "We'll do our best!"

"Thank you" Elm said, rather shocked about the whole thing. When the policeman left, Kris tried to say something, but Elm interrupted: "By the way, Kris, I'm glad you came. I have something you could do."

"Well, actually-"

"In fact, now that you're traveling with Shane here, you could be even more useful, not that I wish to imply that you haven't been a great help before. I got an email from a friend of mine, Mr. Pokémon. He's always raving about great discoveries he makes, but they usually turn out to be… well, not as phenomenal as I would have thought. He lives in a house on Route 31, north from Cherrygrove City. If you'd be so kind and visit him and find out what he's about…"

"I… well, all right." Kris agreed.

With that, Kris and Shane left the lab, with the mysterious Pokémon thief on Shane's mind. Shane didn't condone Pokémon thievery, but he wondered why the thief bothered to steal the Chikorita in the first place. Then, he remembered what he wanted to say, and spoke to Kris again:

"You know, Kris" he said. "I'm sorry for that incident, previously. I really would like to get to know you better. Besides, I'm not even a trainer. I'm just… a tourist, yeah. I was going to head to my… relatives, but I don't know how to get there."

"Normally, I wouldn't go anywhere with someone like you" Kris said, but with a hint of a smile on her face. "but I don't want to feel responsible if you get lost, so all right. I'll take you. Where do you want to go?"

"Uh… Ecruteak City, I think…"

"Ecruteak City? For crying out loud, Shane, we'll take days, maybe even a week before we get there on foot! I don't have a car! I have to stand your for a week?"

"Hey, you promised" Shane said.

"I guess I did…" Kris muttered. "All right, let's go. But please, let's just enjoy the peace and quiet!"

"Sure!" Shane said, then immediately started talking. "So, anyway, here's some pointers I'd like to give in a battle situation. Before you begin a battle, you'll want to-"

Kris sighed. This was going to be a long trip…


	10. The GuiltRidden Thief

**Chapter Ten: **_**The Guilt-Ridden Thief**_

October 14th: "_We have arrived to Mr. Pokémon's place and are spending the night nearby. He insisted that we stayed in his house and even offered to sleep in the same bed with me, but we politely refused his offer. The thing he wanted to show to Professor Elm was a large, white egg of some sorts. Check this out, by the way: he claimed that it was a Pokémon egg! He seriously thinks that Pokémon come from eggs! Wacko! Anyway, this trip has otherwise gone smoothly. I don't think my travel companion, Kris, like me very much. The hints are kinda obvious, because just last night, she told me that she didn't like me. But I am the most likable person on the planet, after all, so I'll think of something. Anyway, tomorrow, we're heading back to New Bark Town to show the egg to professor Elm so we can all laugh at Mr. Pokémon's insanity. Hah!_"

Shane and Kris continued their trip, this time heading back towards New Bark Town. On the way, they had to stop at Cherrygrove City. While Shane constantly tried to keep up a conversation, Kris was mostly quiet. Just recently, she was challenged to a battle by a youngster with Rattata. She assumed that she could easily win, but her Totodile once again refused to do anything but goof around. Shane felt sorry for her, but this only seemed to anger Kris more.

The next day, the duo arrived to their stop Cherrygrove City, where Kris healed her Pokémon. Since Kris wanted to get rid of Shane as quickly as possible, they decided not to waste time, but to head straight to New Bark Town before nightfall. Just as Kris and Shane were about to leave the Pokémon Center, a man running incredibly fast bumped straight into Kris and Shane, causing all three to fall down.

"Hey! We were just leaving!" Shane grunted, trying to get himself up

The speedy man also got off the ground, and Kris immediately recognized him: he had long, red hair, black gloves and, most recognizably, piercing, mean-looking eyes. The man had an overwhelming amount of anger stacked into him, apparently, as he fell to a fit of rage immediately upon getting up:

"Don't people watch where they are going anymore?! Jesus Christ, I'm in a rush! Get out of the way!"

"Wait a minute…" Kris said "Shane, I know him! This is the guy who stole the Chikorita from the lab! I saw him back then!"

"Hmph. So you recognized me, then. And FYI, I'm not just some 'guy', I am Silver, the future Pokémon Champion of Johto. You people don't seem to have the brain capacity to understand, so I'll leave it at that."

"Hold on!" Kris said and blocked the door to prevent Silver from leaving. "You're not just going to take it, are you?"

"Well, what do you think I'm doing?" Silver stated, and tried to squeeze past Kris.

"Look, catch your own Pokémon!" Shane said, his voice trembling a little since this Silver-person was quite intimidating. "It's what the rest of us do!"

"So why I should I be like the 'rest of you', then? I don't need to stay here rambling about what is right and what is wrong. I'll make my own damn choices. I hope we _don't_ see again!"

Shane tried to grab Silver, but Silver reacted so fast, that Shane couldn't possibly dodge when Silver punched him in the nose, causing Shane to flinch backwards. Kris tried to grab Silver by his coat, but Silver was so fast, that he easily shook off Kris' grip. Then, he ran off, leaving Shane and Kris confused at the Pokémon Center, Shane pinching his bloody nose.. Without talking on the way, Shane and Kris headed towards New Bark Town next, to show Professor Elm the mysterious egg.

After a short walk, the duo arrived to New Bark and immediately entered the lab. Now that Elm's assistant was gone, he was all by himself, sitting in front of his computer and staring at the screen blankly. Elm didn't even seem to notice their presence for a few minutes.

"Oh, hello!" the professor said, with a rather surprised look on his face. "I was focused on my work. I need to write this speech that I will be making in a major Pokémon researcher's conference in Saffron City. Now, if only I could remember how to open this document…"

"Never mind that now, professor" Kris said and took the mystery egg from her pocket. "Take a look at what Mr. Pokémon gave us!"

"My stars!" Elm gasped and took a closer look at the egg, then took it from Kris, staring at it in awe. "This… is this a Pokémon egg? If so, that will completely change the way we've been viewing Pokémon evolution as of yet. Hm? It's shaking…"

Shane and Kris noticed it too. The egg was noticeably moving around when it was in Kris' pocket, but now, it was shaking rather wildly. Then, after a few seconds, the egg cracked open, and out came a small Pokémon quite resembling an egg, that stared at everyone in confusion, then happily chirped its name.

"It's a Togepi!" Elm said.

"It's a whatapi?" Shane asked, never having heard of this disgustingly cute Pokémon.

"It's a very rare species. It belongs in the baby Pokémon group, who are basically freshly hatched species who will take their time evolving into stronger forms. This is a major discovery. I have to write about this immediately… if only I could remember where I put my pen. Or my paper, for that matter…"

As professor Elm lowered the Togepi on the table, it cheerfully sat down and continued chirping its name in a rather annoying manner, which prompted Kris to block her ears. But as Elm searched for his notes, a vine was lowered towards Togepi from a hole in the ceiling. It took a while for Kris to notice that a Weepinbell on the roof was slowly dragging Togepi up.

"Shane! Professor! Someone is stealing that annoying baby Pokémon!" she yelled.

Shane and Kris rushed outside, then used a ladder to climb to the roof. On the roof, Shane once again saw the Rocket Grunt with the tanned skin and ridiculously oversized moustache: Fernando.

"The two of you are too late, as the clock of destiny ticks for this baby Pokémon. It will be sold at the black market, and I, Fernando, shall take advantage of the money I will receive from this trade, and with the money, I can buy all the hot pockets in the world! Bwahahahaa!"

"Look, why do you keep me following me, Fernando?" Shane asked. "And why do you talk that way? Say stuff like a normal person!"

"Enough. I have had it with your insolence! Beedrill, go!"Fernando threw a Poké Ball, releasing his Beedrill, who immediately charged towards Shane and Kris, but they dodged. Shane sent out Shrew, which then prompted to attack Fernando, causing him to drop the Togepi. Shane tried to grab Togepi, but Weepinbell wrapped its vine around it, causing a tug-o-war between Shane and Weepinbell, both trying to grab Togepi, who seemed to be constantly happy no matter what. Kris, in her attempt to help, sent Tototodile out, but as expected, Totodile merely danced and jumped around, not listening to a word Kris tried to tell it.

"Beedrill! Strike down that girl!" Fernando shouted, whilst trying to help Weepinbell in grabbing Togepi from Shane.

To obey its master's orders, Beedrill charged towards Kris, with its enormous needles ready to stab her.

"Totodile!" she screamed. "Totodile! Do something! You have to defend me!"

Finally, Totodile listened. It was probably the insistence in Kris' voice, and the fact that she hadn't given up. This confidence then channeled its way to Totodile, who suddenly jumped in front of Kris, slamming its tail to whack Beedrill away.

"Yes! Thank you! Good job! Now, use Water Gun at the entire group."

Fernando, shocked about this turn of events, briefly lost his grip from the Togepi, allowing Shane to snatch it and duck. Totodile then spewed a huge amount of water towards Fernando, Beedrill and Weepinbell, the pressure throwing all three off the roof of the lab and to the bushes below.

"Ow! My spleen!"

The battle was won and the Togepi was retrieved. Better yet, Totodile obeyed Kris now, and suddenly, she felt that she actually would have a chance of making it to the Silver Conference. Kris and Shane returned Togepi to professor Elm, who was thoroughly impressed with the way Kris dealt with Fernando.

"Excellent job!" Elm stated. "But don't forget that Totodile is not your only Pokémon alternative. After all, since you helped me in capturing those Pokémon for so long, I'm allowing you to choose three of them to also take with you. You can do that from the PC at the Pokémon Center in Cherrygrove."

"Wow, thanks, professor."

"Yes… and I'm glad this little thing wasn't sold on the black market. I just wonder how many Pokémon there are in the world."

"I thought professor Oak once stated there were… 150 of them?" Shane said.

"Oh, that old coot doesn't know a thing." Elm said. "I have already confirmed that there's well over two hundred of them. Maybe more of them. That Mr. Pokémon guy may have claimed otherwise, but he hangs out with Oak too much anyway. Trust me. I know these things. Wait, where did that Togepi go to?"

"Wait a minute, there's hundreds of them?"

"Oh, yes. According to a statement made by the CEO of the Nintendu corporation."

"Nintend_u_?"

"Yes, you heard me" Elm said. "The CEO of Nintendu, uh… Cyrus, I believe was his name. He estimated there's hundreds of them living in other regions."

"Oh, great" Kris said sarcastically. "What is this Nintendu corporation trying to do? Feed us with hundreds and hundreds of Pokémon in order us to buy more and more stuff so that the company will have money to rule the world or something?"

"Nah, probably not" Shane said, having completely missed the point again.

"Anyway, it's not those matters that intrigue me" Elm said, looking towards the sky. "I want to know the biggest secrets of the universe. About Pokémon evolution. About their habitats and behavior. I want to know where Pokémon came from. Are they from outer space? Are _we_ from outer space? Who knows. The truth is out there, I'm telling you. And some day, I will find it, and that Mr. Pokémon won't get credit for my discovery that time!"

"I'm sorry, what?" Shane asked. "I wasn't listening."

"Never mind. But would you look at the time! Shane, Kris, you better get going. You are able to find out the mysteries of the Pokémon world and solve the riddles for me, while I continue my work here. Your voyage towards the real truth will be a long and windy one!"

"I just hope there's plenty of rest stops" Shane said whilst leaving the lab with the annoyed-looking Kris.


	11. Rocket in my Pocket

**Chapter Eleven: _Rocket in my Pocket_**

October 19th: "_We continue our seemingly hopeless journey… of DOOM! Nah, not really. My traveling companion, who, for some reason, never gives up an opportunity to insult me, has apparently skills in this whole Pokémon training-thing. We just passed through Violet City and after some rigorous training, Kris defeated the Violet City Gym Leader, Falkner, with little difficulty. Then, as suggested by Professor Elm, she withdrew some Pokémon she captured earlier from the Pokémon Center_."

Within a matter of days, Kris had gotten more and more confident as a Pokémon trainer, and so, she obtained some more Pokémon. Instead of going through the trouble of catching them, she just picked up some critters she had caught earlier on: a Butterfree, a Murkrow and a Misdreavus. Together with her Totodile, this team of Pokémon could easily defeat the monks at Sprout Tower. According to their elder, the monks had sworn a life of celibacy, and Shane immediately started sympathizing with these men: what a terrible fate! Kris, on the other hand, seemed to even admire these monks. With Kris being the grumpy and reluctant chick and Shane being the obnoxious loser guy, this strange duo could easily work their way through any snag they could come across.

But there was one particular snag that Shane and Kris couldn't avoid running into. The surly Pokémon thief, Silver, was constantly ahead of them. At first, Shane and Kris witnessed Silver defeating Falkner with relative ease, then defeating the Sprout Tower elder and running out without saying a word to Shane and Kris. They had already abandoned any attempt of getting the stolen Chikorita back, but they also felt sorry for the Pokémon. During Silver's battle against Falkner, Kris and Shane saw that Silver didn't really treat his Pokémon with much love, far from that. He insulted them at every turn and condemned them for being too weak, not showing any gratitude when they actually defeated their adversaries. He didn't seem to be a very nice person either way, so Shane secretly hoped that he could beat up the man as soon as possible.

They were also constantly followed by Fernando, the flamboyant Rocket Grunt. Strangely enough, he worked alone, and besides the uniform, nothing really proved that he was actually a member of Team Rocket. He kept sneaking behind Shane and Kris and watching them from the bushes. They pretended that they didn't see him, but only because they didn't care about him.

October 21st: "_We made our way through the Union Cave. It was easier than we thought. At least we didn't have to use a flashlight to navigate or solve some ridiculous boulder-related puzzles or something. A man calling himself Anthony the Hiker advised us to head to Azalea Town, which, conveniently enough, is the next town over. He told us that it's a small but lively little town where the people lived happily in harmony with the Pokémon and so on. His story seemed false and sappy, but I still secretly wished that it was true. Anthony seemed like a nice guy, and we were close to inviting him to join us, but then he tried to make a move on Kris. The resulting carnage was not pretty. Seeing what Kris did to Anthony, I decided to postpone my suggestions about getting a bit more "familiar" with her. Worst of all, then Anthony tried to make a move on me! Well, at least I think so. Of course, he would deny everything, but I could obviously see what he was about. You know me, I was flattered, but I said that I didn't swing that way. At least I think I don't… Oh my God, I'm having some sort of existential crisis here, and- Oh, crap, I lost my trail of thought. Oh well."_

After walking, walking and walking some more, Shane and Kris finally arrived to Azalea Town. It was kind of like Anthony described it: a very small, quaint town without any kind of traffic or roads, with lots of trees with plenty of bug and bird Pokémon. But the "harmony with Pokémon"-part was an outright lie. The doors and windows of most of the houses were nailed shut and there were absolutely no people anywhere. The whole place would seem like a ghost town, if it wasn't for the townspeople peeking from the windows and loud noises of machinery coming from nearby.

After inspecting the town and fruitlessly trying to break into the Pokémon Center, Shane and Kris finally saw a middle-aged man, walking back and forth behind the Pokémon Center. They were hesitant of asking any questions, however, because the man kept mumbling to himself and staring blankly at the ground while doing so. He was pale and thin and looked like he was suffering from a disease or something. As Shane and Kris approached him, they heard what he mumbled:

"All gone… Everything gone… There's nothing… They come but they never return… They come but they never return… The men in black are all over… They know me… They know everything about me… They're all gone… Everything gone…"

"Excuse me, my good man," Shane said to interrupt this mumbling. "Can you tell us why this place seems like a ghost town?"

The man stopped his mumbling, but didn't seem to notice Kris or Shane, he just stared at the ground, blankly. After a moment of silence, his eyes started wondering about and they finally seemed to notice Shane's presence. After staring at Shane for a moment, the man grabbed Shane's throat and started choking him, and Shane, completely surprised by this, could no nothing but try and stop this.

"Hey! Stop! HELP!" Kris screamed, trying to get the strangler to stop, but the man merely stared at Shane and squeezed even harder.

Then, just as Kris was about to punch the strangler in the face, a loud 'clank' was heard, and the man fell down on the ground. He was knocked unconscious by an old man with a shovel. The old man then helped Shane get back on his feet. Shane tried to thank the man, but he could only emit high-pitched wheezing, so Kris thanked the man instead.

"Thanks!" she said. "What was that all about?"

"Ah, some of the folk of our ol' town have gotten the nasty case of 'crazy', but never fear, my girl, for I, Kurt, am ready to purge the evil spirits from this city!"

"What?"

"My name is Kurt" the old man said. "I am the oldest living inhabitant of this town. I am an expert on making Poké Balls. In fact, if you can find any apricorns around this town, just bring them to me, and I'll make high quality balls out of them. In fact, that's my slogan: Balls of Steel!"

"I don't need any advertising" Kris said. "I want to know why this place is deserted and people act all crazy."

"Very few people know what happened, but I have my ideas…" Kurt mused, looking around the empty town. "One day, our mascot Pokémon, all of them, simply disappeared. This superstitious and gullible town immediately thought that some spiritual forces were doing this, and so, they locked themselves in. Those who didn't have the time to get to their homes before they were locked, started wondering around the town, completely senseless. Oh, our town is so quiet without the Slowpoke…"

"Hang on!" Kris interrupted. "Slowpoke? That's your mascot Pokémon?"

"Yes. There's no real reason for it, but I love those little critters. Now the only Pokémon in town are the Charcoal Man's Farfetch'd and the Pokémon in the gym."

"Oh, there's a gym here?" Kris asked, now looking quite interested. "Could you possibly direct me to it?"

"Sure, but I don't see the point" Kurt shrugged. "The gym leader, Bugsy, is just as naïve as the rest of the townspeople. The gym is closed until the Slowpoke return."

"Son of a…" Kris cursed.

"But don't worry, m'lady!" Kurt said, suddenly becoming all heroic again. "For I, Kurt, am still in my senses. My own Slowpoke was stolen as well, and my granddaughter is upset now. I know what's going on here. I saw men dressed in black uniforms, sneaking around the Slowpoke Well. I am certain that Team Rocket is behind this heinous crime!"

"Team Rocket?" Shane repeated, his voice functioning again. "They're causing trouble here as well?"

"You've met them before?" Kris asked.

"Sure. I took them on in Kanto. Oh, I had some mighty battles against them. I was cornered, with just me and Shrew against a hundred grunts. Then, suddenly, a hundred additional grunts arrived. The situation seemed hopeless but I was ready for some ass-kicking. So, then the president told me-"

"Never mind about that!" Kurt said. "Since you two youngsters seem to be quite experienced on that field, you can join me. Together, we shall defeat those evil men and rescue the Slowpoke together! Come on!"

"Wait, no!" Kris said. "I'm sorry, but we're… I mean, _I_ am in a rush. I need to get eight badges before the Silver Conference begins!"

"Come on, Kris!" Shane said. "Don't you want to be a hero?"

"Sure I want, but I really don't have the time… but, on the other hand, seeing as the gym is going to be closed until this problem is solved, I won't be getting the badge from here anyway, so… Oh, screw it. I'm in!"

"Great!" Kurt said cheerfully. "Then follow me, hero and heroine, to the Slowpoke Well!"

Shane and Kris followed Kurt to the outskirts of the town, to the place where they had heard the strange sounds of machinery earlier on. They arrived to a large well, and immediately realized that someone had gone down there, as the well was opened and there were plenty of tools outside just laying on the ground. Shane, Kris and Kurt sneaked to the well and peeked down.

"Team Rocket is down there?" Kris asked suspiciously.

"Oh yes" Kurt stated. "This well is merely an entrance to a large cave where the Slowpoke originally lived until they arrived to our peaceful town. Now be quiet. Look down the bottom of the well. Do you see something?"

"Oh yeah…" Shane said. "That's a Rocket Grunt all right."

"This calls for a classic 'rappel down the rope and knock the guard out'-technique!" Kurt said.

"Does it involve rappelling down the rope and knocking out the guard?" Kris asked.

"Why, yes it does! How did you know? Well, never mind, you kids go first. I'll follow through. Shane, you look like your shoes are strong enough. Just descend down there and hit that guy in the head!"

"Me? Why not Kris?"

"Stop being such a pansy and go down there!" Kris snapped, as silently as she could.

"Yes ma'am…"

Shane, after giving one last dirty look to Kurt and Kris, climbed on top of the well, grabbed the rope, then lowered himself down towards the bottom of the well. Approaching the Rocket Grunt standing on guard carelessly, Shane tried to kick him in the head, but instead, he suddenly lost his grip from the rope and fell down on the ground - directly in front of the guard.

"Ouch! My tailbone!"

"What? Who are you?" the guard panicked. "Intruder al-"

His remaining words were muffled when Kris lowered herself down the well, hitting the grunt in the head and knocking the guard out rather effectively.

"How hard could that be?" she asked.

Shane tried to come up with a response, but he and Kris had to stand back when Kurt came tumbling down as well, landing straight on his back, groaning in pain.

"Ssh!" Shane hushed. "You're attracting attention!"

"Oh, son of a bitlord!" Kurt groaned. "I hurt my back! But hey, I don't have any Pokémon with me. You two go on without me! Rescue the Slowpoke! Defeat Team Rocket!"

"Oh, hell no!" Shane moaned. "How about… we'll go back up, then come back later to pick up you up and we'll try this again at a better time, OK?"

"No!" Kurt said. "It's too late for that! I sincerely wish I could come with you, but I'll be praying for you!"

"Gee, thanks" Kris snarked. "We could use a divine intervention or something right now. Come on, Shane. Let's finish this!"

"I have a better idea. You finish this while I make sure that old Kurt doesn't get too hurt or lonely in this scary well!"

"Come on, Shane. It'll be fun. Well, it won't be, but I sure as hell aren't going alone! Come on!"

Shane submitted to his fate and followed Kris as the duo walked along a narrow, underground path. The cave was rather damp, as there was supposedly some sort of underground lake nearby. After walking for a while, Shane and Kris came out in a much, much larger cave, which apparently was located right _underneath_ Azalea Town. In the middle of the cave, surrounded by a body of water, Shane and Kris saw dozens of Slowpoke, just relaxing and having their usual, vacant stare on.

"Oh, shizz, Shane" Kris whispered. "Look at their tails"

"What about them?"

"They've been cut off!"

Now Shane saw it too: the usual, long, pink tail was missing from every Slowpoke, presumably being cut off by Team Rocket. Strangely enough, this really didn't infuriate Shane, as the tails would presumably grow back anyway and the Slowpoke didn't seem to mind. This whole matter actually confused both Shane and Kris: what was the point?

"OK… it's probably going to take hours and several paragraphs before we can find Team Rocket," Kris said, and Shane nodded. "So, we should split up, and-"

"Looking for someone, _mi amor?"_

Shane and Kris turned around, only to be confronted by about six Rocket Grunts, accompanied by the ever-present Hispanic thug, Miguel, as well as his two goons, José and Pepe. Miguel was just as rough-looking and unshaven as the last time Shane saw him.

"Damn it, Miguel!" Shane panted after being scared out of his mind. "Stop randomly appearing behind me!"

"Never!" Miguel said. "What are you two _pendejos_ doing here? Didn't I tell you to stay away from my operations, huh?"

"Oh, you two know each other?" Kris said, trying to buy some time. "Nice to meet you, Mr. Miguel. My name is Kris, and you seem to know Shane here. We got lost on our way to the flea market, but thank goodness we found you friendly people!"

"Nice try, _puta_, but your friend here has caused enough trouble for me and my friends as it is!"

"Hey, listen, first of all, he's not my friend. Secondly, I know Spanish insults," Kris said angrily. "Trust me, you don't want to get me mad!"

"What are you going to do, lady? Throw credit cards at me?"

"Relax, everyone" Shane said. "What are you people doing here anyway? I understand that you're assholes, but why go through all this just to cut off tails from Slowpoke?"

"I can see that you don't have any business instinct, my friend" Miguel sneered, prompting some laughter in the midst of the Rocket Grunts. "This is all just a part of the bigger picture or some kind of roulette played by Team Rocket. I'm just a hired muscle. I don't know anything. I was just hired to cut off tails from Slowpoke and sell them as an exotic delicacy. People are stupid, Shane. They'll pay whatever you want just as long as it's about something they think is rare and valuable. Now, you're disrupting our work, so-"

Whatever Miguel was about to say next, was silenced when a large boulder fell from the well's ceiling directly in front of Miguel, causing an earth-shattering impact, nearly killing Shane who was standing a few inches away.

"My apologies to my colleagues down below!" said the person responsible for the boulder.

Kris looked up, and the Rocket Grunts followed suit. It was none other than Fernando, looking down on the people at the well, then telling his Weepinbell to lower him down to the well, where Fernando started ranting at Miguel:

"My cousin, Miguel!" he exclaimed, pointing at the dumbfounded Miguel. "You have deceived me, your own flesh and blood, almost. For all these years I have been working for Team Rocket, doing the most useless jobs imaginable. And all along, you, my dear cousin, whilst knowing how much I wanted to be a part of the inner circle's operations, have been working with Team Rocket? For shame!"

"Wait, _Fernando_ is your cousin?" asked Shane, who seemingly had recovered from the shock. "_Fernando_ is the guy who was supposed to hunt me down day and night?"

"Well, it has been a while since I last saw him…" Miguel said, avoiding direct eye contact with his cousin. "Back then, he was more impressive and intimidating. But at least he was able to follow you."

"You always were the black sheep of the family, cousin" Fernando stated rather melodramatically. "For years, I tried to make sure that we wouldn't be viewed stereotypically and be typecast as villains in some bizarre fan fiction story! But all my efforts have gone to waste because of you. I work for Team Rocket for the honor, but you just do it for the money. Once again, shame on you!"

"Hold on a second, you!" said one of the Rocket Grunts, who was reading a piece of paper. "Your name was Fernando, right? But there's no one in the list with that name. You're not a member of Team Rocket!"

"I figured you would say something incredibly stupid like that!" Fernando said. "You are working with my cousin, after all. So, I came prepared. If I'm not allowed to be in your silly little operation, then so be it. I'm going to blow this well to smithereens!"

With that, Fernando pulled out a cartoonish stick of dynamite, holding it up high in the air. In the meantime, Shane and Kris had sneaked to the Slowpoke and started to carry them away, one at a time. Neither Miguel or the Rocket Grunts seemed to notice, as they were all entirely focused on the stick of dynamite in Fernando's hands. Fernando signaled Weepinbell to lower its vine again and then took out his lighter. Laughing triumphantly, Fernando lit the dynamite, dropped it in front of Miguel and returned back up to the surface. As soon as the dynamite hit the ground, Miguel and the Rockets all fled in terror, but barely managed to take a few steps when the dynamited exploded, covering the entire well in dust.

After the dust had settled, Shane and Kris crawled out from their temporary hideout, where they had stashed the Slowpoke and themselves during the explosion. Surprisingly, the well was still in tact, and Miguel, José, Pepe and the Rockets had disappeared into thin air.

"I have always wondered why, whenever a stick of dynamite explodes in a cartoonish story, no one ever gets horribly mutilated" Shane said, wondering where all the Rocket Grunts had disappeared.

"Well, at least we go the Slowpoke to safety" Kris said, looking at the Slowpoke who just lounged around, apparently having no idea that an explosion occurred a few second ago.

"Hey! Are you all right?"

Shane and Kris noticed Kurt walking towards them, cheerfully smiling for this rather unlikely triumph and praising Shane and Kris for their victory:

"You did it!"

"We didn't really do anything…" Kris said. "This madman just blew this place up, and-"

"Shut up…" Shane muttered. "I want to have the credit!"

Kurt didn't seem to listen, as he inspected the Slowpoke. One of them seemed to notice Kurt's presence and slowly crawled to him and greeted him by making a strange noise, repeating its own name, just like all the other Pokémon.

"Yep, this one is my Slowpoke, all right" Kurt said. "Wait, it has a mail in it… _'You may already be a winner'_… Oh, crap…"

"Hey, wait a minute!" Kris said. "I thought you hurt your back earlier so you couldn't walk!"

"Yeah… well, I'll explain it some other time. Let's get back up and return the Slowpoke to the people!"

In a matter of hours, Azalea Town was restored to its former glory. Shane, Kris and Kurt returned to the surface and one at a time, returned the Slowpoke to their owners, prompting them to come out of their houses and start living again. Surprisingly enough, besides Kurt and his granddaughter, the local gym leader, Bugsy, also thanked Shane and Kris. Due to his rather _peculiar_ looks, however, Shane and Kris couldn't do anything but stare at Bugsy, while the gym leader talked to them:

"…and once again, feel free to stay in Azalea Town as long as you want. Whatever you want, it's free. Nothing's too good for the heroes who saved this town. Of course, due to complications relating to this matter, we won't actually show any gratitude later on and we'll never talk about this incident again, so enjoy your fifteen minutes of fame!"

"Uh, sure…" Kris said nervously. "Well, I'm a trainer, so I'll drop by your gym later on, then…"

"Of course!" Bugsy said. "You know, you remind me of myself, when I was a young boy and a beginning Pokémon trainer…"

"Wait a second!" Shane said, disregarding all manners. "You're a man?"

"Excuse me?"

"Well, it's just that you look exactly like a woman. No offense or anything, but you even sound like a woman, but you still have the audacity to claim that you're a man! Sheesh, I hate these stupid androgynous anime-like characters!"

Kris sighed and pretended that she didn't know Shane, but Bugsy was already insulted.

"I'll… see you at the gym!" he/she sobbed to Kris and ran back to his/her gym in a rather feminine manner.

"Anyway…" said Kurt, who didn't seem to notice the incident at all. "I actually have one last favor to ask you."

"I hope it doesn't take too long" Shane said. "I need to get to Ecruteak and Kris needs to get to the Silver Conference in time."

"Oh, trust me, it won't take long" Kurt assured them. "In case I didn't mention already, which I attribute to my ever-growing senility, I have a son who used to work at Silph Co before he got fired for some reason. He now has a private laboratory at Whirl Islands. I'm looking after his daughter here. Like myself, he's an expert on Poké Balls. A few weeks ago, I got a peculiar Poké Ball in the mail, and I have no idea what it is or how to open it. So, all I'm asking you to do is to take the ball to him to be researched."

Kurt took out a quite normal-looking Poké Ball from his pocket. It was exactly the same size and shape as a regular Poké Ball, but instead of the usual red and white, it was half gold- and half silver-colored. It also seemed to shine rather ominously as Kurt handed the ball to Shane.

"I have no idea who sent it, but a note came with it, telling that it's something called a 'GS Ball'" Kurt said. "When you arrive to Whirl Islands, the lab should be easy to come by. Just ask for Dr. Gideon."

"Don't worry. I'll do that" Shane said. "I have no idea where those Whirl Islands are, but I'll do it anyway. I need something to do, after all. I just hope that this GS Ball isn't some poorly-written MacGuffin…"

"I assure you that it isn't" Kurt said, then turned around and started walking away. Before leaving completely, he stopped, waved goodbye at Shane and Kris and said: "Farewell, my young friends. May the stars light your path. And remember, if you run into some horrible monsters at the Ilex Forest and get eaten or killed in a horrible way, the town of Azalea is not responsible for that. Just an FYI."

_C'est la Vie_.


	12. Final Arrival

**Chapter Twelve: _Final Arrival_**

October 24th: "_Our increasingly stupid voyage has taken a more positive direction. Sure, Kris still doesn't like me. Sure, my skills as a Pokémon trainer are sub-par. Sure, I felt a sting of jealousy when Kris defeated Bugsy and his/her bug Pokémon. Sure, I realized that 'sting of jealousy' was an incredibly lame pun. Sure, I tried to challenge Bugsy myself only to witness as his/her Scyther beat the living daylights out of my poor little Shrew. Of course, I left a rather nasty surprise in his/her mailbox, just to get back at… that person. Seriously, someone tell me! Is Bugsy is a girl or a guy? It keeps me up at night!"_

October 25th: "_We are approaching Goldenrod City, as we have gotten through Ilex Forest. After doing some pointless side quests like chasing a Farfetch'd around and getting into trouble with some guy who had his Pokémon head butt trees in order to make Pokémon fall out. I tried that, but since Shrew refused to butt heads with that tree, I tried with my own head. After my brains stopped bleeding, I actually caught something extremely valuable: this weird, huge bug Pokémon called Heracross. It's pretty good, it immediately defeated all my Pokémon when I arranged a training match. We also saw Silver briefly, but for some reason, that goon doesn't want to talk to us. Fine!"_

October 28th: "_We left Goldenrod City. Boy, was that place lively! Actually, Kris seems to be more friendly to me now. We even had a practice match together, and she won, unsurprisingly enough. I also had to console her when she lost to Whitney. That bitch had a huge Miltank with her anyway, so it's no wonder she won Kris. So, after some training and after Kris caught a Sudowoodo nearby, she managed to beat Whitney on her second try. Then Whitney started crying, so I pushed her down the stairs and grabbed the badge from her. Luckily, we avoided any lawsuits when we ran the hell out of there. Next stop is Ecruteak City, I guess. Kris seems to be pretty cocky now that she has three badges, but I'd like to remind you, at this point, that I have three badges too! From Kanto! So, I'm not all bad, right? Right?_"

For over two weeks, Shane and Kris had traveled together, walking, talking, battling and running into bizarre events that would take up too much words to describe. Kris immediately disliked Shane upon meeting him, and she still didn't like him. She felt that Shane's ego combined with his incompetence in everything made him absolutely unbearable. Still, for some perverted reason, she nevertheless enjoyed the time she spent traveling with Shane.

Even though Shane offered some pretty strange battle advice, like telling her to use bug-type Pokémon against fire-types, just for the 'surprise element', Shane was helpful because he never lost his optimism. Thanks to this, Kris was able to overcome the obstacles on her way and defeat tough gym leaders like Whitney.

But, like all good things, this voyage was also coming to an end, and eventually, Shane and Kris arrived to Ecruteak City, Shane's final destination. It was medium-sized, noticeably smaller than the huge Goldenrod City they were just in, but also a lot larger than the towns they were in before. Also, unlike other, more modern cities, Ecruteak City was full of old-fashioned buildings, theaters and museums, having a lovely, old-timey feel to it. The most striking feature in Ecruteak City was the huge tower in the northern part of town, stretching out towards the sky, being easily about forty to fifty stories high. There were other places of interest as well, like the Kimono Girl Dance Theater that Shane and Kris noticed while searching for the Pokémon Center.

After stumbling into the Pokémon Center, Shane and Kris were immediately apprehended by a strange, fat man in a clown costume.

"Congratulations, ladies and gentle-men!" the man exclaimed with a loud, annoying voice as soon as Kris and Shane had stepped in. "This is your lucky day, especially yours, my good sir!"

"Mine?" Shane asked. "Really?"

"Oh yes, you handsome sir" the clown said. "You and your lovely companion have a once-in-a-lifetime chance to become richer than ever!"

"Oh… we're not together" Kris said, but being noticeably less persistent about it as usual.

"Oh, but that's even better, sir" the clown said, focusing all his attention to Shane ."When you're rich, you'll be getting a lot more action, if you know what I mean."

"I don't, but the part about being rich sounds good!" Shane said cheerfully, ignoring Kris' sarcastic eye roll. "How do I get rich?"

"Well, as it turns out, I have something here that will change your life for good!" the clown shouted, reaching to his suitcase and taking out a device that looked like a portable mine detector. "This extremely convenient gadget sniffs out hidden treasure wherever they are, and today, but only today, can this device be yours!"

"Hidden treasure? That's great! How much?"

"Oh, my good sir, it has a value so great that it can't be measured in money!"

"Hold on, shyster!" Kris said. "How come you're not using it yourself to find 'buried treasure', huh?"

"Oh, that was a good question" the clown said, but still looking at Shane. "Of course, on a normal day, I wouldn't sell it, but alas, my back is troubling me and I can't travel around places to look for treasure. But you, young sir, you can. For only five… hundred… yens, I mean, dollars, or whatever currency is this country using, can this baby be yours!"

"Wow, I would be a fool not to take that offer!" Shane said, but was disappointed when he realized that he didn't have enough money. "Well… except that, I don't have five hundred whatevers… This little bag contains all the money I have, including my life savings. It's not exactly five-hundred, but-"

But Shane couldn't say anything more, as the clown-costumed man grabbed the bag of money, gave Shane the treasure-locating device and proceeded to run away, while talking extremely fast:

"Well-normally-I-don't-give-credit-but-it's-your-lucky-day-here-you-go-okay-thanks-bye!"

And with that, the man disappeared. Shane stared at his new machine in awe, but Kris could only stare Shane, not believing what she saw.

"I can't believe this!" she said.

"I know!" Shane replied. "Can you believe how easily I ripped him off?"

"You're saying… you ripped _him_ off?"

"Sure. You see, I fooled him to accept my worthless life savings for this magnificent device. He'll regret it when I found an ancient gold treasure from somewhere over here."

"Well, enjoy" Kris said, then turned to leave.

"Hold on… where are you going?"

Kris stopped, and after a moment of silence, decided to respond without much sarcasm:

"I kept my end of the deal. I led you to Ecruteak City, in one piece, surprisingly enough. I have to challenge the gym, and you said you were going to visit your relatives here. If you're looking for treasure, however, you can always check out the Burned Tower."

"The Burned Tower?" Shane repeated, trying to desperately keep the conversation going.

"Yeah, I read about it earlier…" Kris said. "It was originally called the Brass Tower. I don't remember the whole story, but it was struck by lightning about a hundred years ago, and it burned to the ground."

Immediately captivated by stories of ancient myths and legends, Shane decided to head to the Burned Tower. After some convincing, Shane managed to get Kris to join him, and so, the duo headed there. But first, as Kris insisted, they would visit the Ecruteak Gym.

Unfortunately, a rather rude old man at the entrance of the Ecruteak Gym merely pushed Shane and Kris away, telling that Morty, the gym leader, was absent. Kris was obviously disappointed by this turn of events, but nevertheless followed Shane to the Burned Tower, where Shane planned to put his new itemfinder to the test.

The Burned Tower was at the northern end of the town, quite close to the enormous Tin Tower that Shane and Kris saw earlier. The Burned Tower was probably once just as tall a the Tin Tower, but now, it was only the size of a house, the roof obviously burned out completely and the walls charred so that the tower seemed to be all black. There were no people nearby, and the tower immediately gave Shane and Kris the creeps, but they decided to go in anyway.

Fortunately, there were people inside the tower. It seemed that Shane wasn't the only one who got scammed: several people were scattered around the interior of the tower, using their crappy itemfinders to look for nonexistent treasure.

"Oh, damn it!" Shane cursed, and decided to throw his itemfinder away. As he cursed his bad luck, he noticed a rather familiar man right nearby, noticeably being among the few people in the tower who _weren't_ trying to look for hidden treasure. The man had brown hair, and was dressed in a rather bizarre, magician-like manner: in a purple suit and a cape: it was Eusine, who was talking to a young, blonde-haired man.

"Hey!" Shane shouted upon recognizing him. "Eusine!"

Instead of reacting like a long-lost friend or relative, Eusine actually was rather displeased at the sight of Shane, but nevertheless recognized Shane's presence, and walked to Shane and Kris, with the blonde-haired man following suit.

"Oh, hello, there…" Eusine started, but seemed to struggle remembering Shane.

"It's Shane! You remember me, right?"

"Oh, sure… Well, anyway, this is Morty, the gym leader of Ecruteak City!" Eusine said, nonchalantly pointing at the white-haired man behind him.

Shane and Morty shook hands, and Shane proceeded to introduce Kris as well:

"Nice to meet you. This, on the other hand, is my f… I mean, she's… Uh, this is Kris, a trainer from New Bark Town."

"Wow, I can't believe it!" Kris said, sounding like she was hypnotized. "I'm a huge fan of you, Mr. Morty! You're the only gym leader in Johto who's keeping it real!"

"Thank you, I suppose" Morty said and smiled at Kris while shaking her hand. "I have to tell you, however, that I'm not really that cynical as I come across in the interviews. It's just a show that I put on for the media."

"Oh…" Kris said, rather bemused by this, but decided to get over it. "Anyway, what are you doing here? You weren't at the gym."

"Eusine called me here," Morty said. "Actually, we're investigating a case for… well, I can't really say, but-"

"Investigating" Shane muttered, then it seemed to hit him: "Hang on! You're a member of the Legendary Society too, aren't you, Morty?"

"How did you…" Morty said, but then seemed to realize, and turned to Eusine.

"Oh yeah, I forgot to mention," Eusine said, obviously not caring about it. "I think I accidentally told that guy that I'm a member of the Legendary Society and told him about it, but no harm done, right?"

"Thanks a lot Eusine, it was a real nice secret organization while it lasted!"

"No, no, it wasn't his fault!" Shane said ."I have already met another LS member, Lance, I think…"

"What did you say?" Kris interrupted, now being legitimately interested in Shane for the first time. "You know Lance as well? Lance, the Pokémon League Champion?"

"I'll tell you later," Shane said to the awed Kris. "Anyway, you can tell us, Morty. What are you doing here?"

"Well, since Eusine probably told you this already…" Morty said, once again giving Eusine an angry look. "A few months ago, Suicune, the legendary Pokémon, was suspected of killing a bunch of people in Sinnoh. We're still investigating that, and it's pretty strange, since Suicune was supposed to be slumbering right here in this tower, along with Entei and Raikou."

"WHAT?" Shane and Kris said, at the exact same time. "There are legendary Pokémon here? Right now?"

"I… I mean, _we_, believe there is!" announced Eusine, who had a great urge to participate in the conversation. "But we have already searched this tower from top to bottom. Nothing. Just dust."

"Let's not be too hasty" Morty said calmly. "There might be a basement floor and a hidden entrance here somewhere. But it would take someone without any regard for his own safety to find it…"

"I'm on the case!" said Shane, who cheerfully grabbed his flashlight and started perusing the tower.

While the tower only consisted of one room, it was still pretty large, and soon, Shane got separated from Kris, Eusine and Morty, and started just wandering around in the darkness. To make sure he wouldn't go crazy from the fear, he released Shrew from its ball, and it immediately grabbed Shane's leg and refused to take even one step in the darkness, forcing Shane to drag it around.

"Come on, you silly coward!" Shane urged his Pokémon, trying to shake it off. "There's nothing to worry about here!"

"_Typical. A Pokémon just as cowardly as its master!_"

The voice that announced this caused Shane to jump to the air and nearly have a heart attack. Shane looked around him, then finally saw the red-haired and surly-looking Silver, standing just a few feet from him. While Silver didn't have any weapons or anything with him, just the mere sight of him unnerved Shane, causing his voice to tremble when he addressed Silver:

"S-Silver…" he stuttered. "What are you doing here?"

"I would ask the same from you, but I already know why you're here!" Silver said angrily, approaching Shane slowly. "You're still trying to get back the Pokémon I stole, aren't you?"

"Well, not really…" Shane said. "But now that you mentioned it, I'm sure Professor Elm misses his Chikorita!"

"Well, too bad for him!" Silver said smugly, reaching a Poké Ball from his pocket. "Because there is no Chikorita anymore. It has evolved into a Bayleef!"

Silver called Bayleef out of its ball, showing Shane this Pokémon that resembled Chikorita quite largely in terms of color, the pearl-like pattern around its neck and the leaf sticking out of its head. But it was much, much larger than Chikorita, and apparently much heavier as well.

"You bastard…" Shane whispered.

Deciding to finally stand up against this jerk, Shane pulled back his arm, ready to give Silver a beating of a lifetime. Unfortunately, this didn't work. Silver didn't even have to do anything: as soon as Bayleef noticed that Shane was about to punch Silver, it head butted Shane away, causing Shane to fall on his back - and straight through the floor to the basement below. Shrew, after noticing what happened to Shane, quickly rushed after him by jumping into the hole caused by Shane's fall.

"Hmph! Now you've fallen into some hole!" Silver scuffed and walked away. "Some genius you are.."

Shane, who had fallen down to the tower's basement, found himself surrounded by complete darkness and silence, the only voice coming from Shrew, who Shane felt next to him. Fortunately, for situations _exactly_ like these, Shane always carried a flashlight ready. Shane lit this flashlight and looked around.

"Whew… fortunately we didn't land into any potentially dangerous place" Shane said to Shrew. "Right Shrew? Shrew?"

Shrew didn't reply: it was staring blankly at something, and as Shane turned his flashlight towards it, he was frozen from fear as well: two large, very threatening-looking Pokémon stood on a stone platform. The other was brown, lion-like Pokémon with vague canine-like traits. It had gray plates surrounding the cape, making it look like it had a smoking crater on its back. The other was yellow, looking more like a tiger, having smooth fur and black lightning bolt-resembling stripes all over its body. The most striking feature about the yellow Pokémon were its large fangs. Shane could do nothing but stare at these two, wondering if they were legendary Pokémon, or just normal Pokémon pissed off because Shane woke them up.

At any rate, the two Pokémon quietly looked at Shane, then raised their heads and both attacked in unison: the brown Pokémon breathing fire and the yellow Pokémon shooting electricity towards the ceiling of the cave, prompting Shane and Shrew to throw themselves on the floor. Before Shane could get up, the two Pokémon ran away with intense speed, jumping up from the hole and bursting out from the tower, leaving only dust behind. For a moment, Shane and Shrew lay motionless on the ground, shocked at what happened. Then, they heard voices coming from the hole blown up by the two Pokémon:

"Did you see that? Did you see that? What happened here? Come on, something happened!"

Shane and Shrew got up, and saw Eusine's head appearing to the hole.

"Hold on, Bane, we're lowering you a rope!" Eusine said.

"Thanks, but the name is Shane, not Bane" Shane replied. "Did you see those two things?"

"I don't know about the others, but _I _got a brief glimpse, yes. I swear, I feel like I'm the Chosen One or something…"

"Why's that?" Shane asked.

"Well, it's obvious, isn't it?" Eusine said, taking an offense from this. "I saw the two legendary Pokémon, Entei and Raikou, just as it was meant to be!"

"Hold on there!" Shane said. "First of all, we all saw them. Second of all, it was me who fell in front of them. And third, wow! They were legendaries?"

Kris and Morty appeared to Eusine's side as well, lowering a rope for Shane and dragging him back up to the tower, while Eusine talked and didn't seem to care for helping.

"Yes, legendaries indeed" Eusine lectured. "Which brings me to the ultimate point. Those two form the 'legendary beast'-trio along with Suicune, not to be confused with the Beastie Boys or anything like that. Those three were created by their protector, Ho-Oh, a hundred years ago when this tower burned to cinders. Or so I was told, by Morty. In any case, those two will probably start roaming around Johto for no good reason and they will lead me straight to Suicune! That way, I can capture it. I mean, solve the murder case" Eusine added when Morty gave him a destroying look.

Now that the group got Shane back up, they left the Burned Tower, only to confront three identical people standing in the doorway, looking like Buddhist monks, similar to those Kris and Shane met at the Sprout Tower.

"Aagh!" Shane screamed upon seeing them. "Rapists!"

"No! They're the Wise Trio!" Morty explained. "There are several monks doing historical and religious work here in Ecruteak City. They're all in the neighboring Tin Tower or in its vicinity. But these three are special, because they also form the executives of the Legendary Society. Gentlemen, I'm sure you saw what happened here?"

"Yes, indeed we did, brother Morty" one of the monks said. "And behold, for the end is approaching, for there is no other reason for the legendary beasts to break out of the Burned Tower and cause mayhem."

"Let's not exaggerate…" Morty said, then turned to Kris and Shane. "Anyway, these two are Kris and Shane… they're, uh…"

"I'm a Pokémon Trainer from New Bark Town" Kris said, helping Morty to fill in the blanks. "And this is Shane from Viridian City, who, uh… does something. Hi!"

"So you guys 'run' the Legendary Society, huh?" Shane asked.

"So to speak, yes" answered another monk. "This is Sage Broderick, the brother to my left is Sage Tim and I'm Sage Edmund, so-"

"Yeah, yeah, yeah, nice to meet you, and all, but I have a question for you" Shane said, and took a deep breath. "Can I join the Society?"

Surprisingly to Shane, the monks did not laugh at Shane or even react surprised.

"I'm sorry, brother Shane" said Broderick. "But the Wise Trio do not choose who gets to become a member. You would have to talk to our leader."

"Oh, you mean, Lance, right?"

"No, not brother Lance, even though he has been very useful to us and is kind to take time from his work at the Pokémon League and at the International Police."

"Wow, what a Gary Stu!" Kris said.

"Hey, you shall not question the Lance!" Shane retorted. "So, where is your leader then?"

"No one knows" said Sage Tim. "He travels all around the world, and only occasionally stops by to visit our HQ here in Ecruteak. So, the best you can do is either wait here or drop by at the correct moment. I think. Anyway, we just wanted to make sure you're aware of the situation. Until we see again, brother Kris and sister Shane. I mean, the other way around. Farewell!"

The Wise Trio turned around and left, walking in perfect unison, strangely enough. Kris turned around to ask a question from Eusine, only to see that he was gone as well.

"Hey!" she said. "Eusine is gone!"

"Yeah, he does that a lot" Morty shrugged ."Nothing to worry about. Besides, he's probably chasing after Suicune or something. Now then, if you'll excuse me, I'll return to my gym. I've been absent for too long already."

"Hold on!"

Morty was about to leave, but turned around when Kris called for him.

"Yes? I must warn you, I already have a girlfriend!"

"Oh, it's not that, even though you are cool and good-looking and all that" Kris said, causing Shane to cough impatiently. "Anyway, I was going to say… I want to challenge you!"

"Oh, yes, I thought as much" Morty said. "Well then, let's go to the gym!"

Now that Morty was with Kris, she didn't have to challenge the gym trainers or solve any fun and challenging puzzles, but was led straight to the battle with Morty. Shane watched from the sidelines, along with the local Gym Trainers. Since it took a while for Shane to get it, the Gym was apparently using Ghost-types, as evident by the numerous Gastly's floating around.

"One on one, OK?" Morty asked.

"Fine with me" Kris replied and took out a Poké Ball. "Totodile, go!"

"Gengar, go!"

Kris decided to use her trusty Totodile, her starter who had finally started to obey her. Morty, on the other hand, used Gastly's fully evolved form, Gengar, which made things interesting, considering Gengar's immense powers, speed and experience. Kris ordered Totodile to use Slam, and it happily did as ordered, preparing to slam Gengar with its tail… and nothing happened. The attack just went straight through Gengar's spirit-like body.

"Hey! What gives?" Kris asked.

"You should already know that Normal-type attacks have no effect on Ghost-type Pokémon. I mean, everybody knows that!" Morty said.

"Yeah, even I knew that!" Shane bragged from the sidelines. "Oh, wait… no I didn't. You always learn new things, huh?"

"Oh, screw it. Totodile! Water Gun!"

Totodile spit a blast of water on Gengar, and Gengar was unable to dodge. It was hit by the spray of water and was knocked backwards, but it was far from out.

"Gengar, Hypnosis!"

Gengar focused entirely on Totodile, and Totodile couldn't resist but to look at Gengar, with the ghost Pokémon emitting powerful rays that eventually started to cause Totodile to fall asleep.

"No! Totodile! Look away! Do something!"

"She's losing it" Shane whispered to one of the spectators.

"Now, Gengar, Dream Eater!"

Gengar, after successfully hypnotizing Totodile, used another attack to 'eat' Totodile's dreams, regaining energy in the process and inflicting damage on Totodile, who could not anything but trash about on the floor. However, the attack seemed to have severe side effects, as Totodile seemed to have such a powerful vision that it woke up, chanting its own name as usual.

"Yes! Good job, Totodile. Now, Water Gun!"

"Gengar! Use Shadow Ball!"

Totodile prepared to squirt more water, but Gengar was much faster: it created a large, glowing blob with its spiritual powers, then hurled it straight towards Totodile, hitting it and knocking it out. The attack was very similar to the one Shane saw Mewtwo using in the Cerulean Cave.

"Totodile is unable to battle" said the announcer. "The Gym leader wins the match!"

Both Kris and Morty recalled their Pokémon. Kris was visibly shocked by this turn of events, and was also ashamed that she lost because of her panicking and her rookie mistake. Morty approached Kris to shake her hand, respectably not gloating about his victory.

"It was a good battle, Kris" Morty said. "Hey, you can try again if you-"

"Hell no!" she shouted. "I can't beat your Gengar! I don't know if you've been feeding it steroids or what, but… oh, who am I kidding. I suck!"

"Hey, you don't suck!" Shane said, completely truthfully. "You beat three gym leaders before with little to no sweat and all, hell, you even beat that ugly bishonen dude/chick Bugsy with your first try!"

Kris wasn't convinced, but simply marched out of the gym. Shane promptly said goodbye to Morty, then followed Kris. After she walked for a few minutes, she eventually stopped and turned back to Shane.

"I'm sorry…" she said, to the surprise of Shane. "I guess I was a real bitch back there. And several times before. It's just… I need to win, Shane. I have this urge to keep doing better and better, and those three victories before made me feel quite invincible."

"Well, you weren't, I'll tell you that. During the battle, boy, did you sti-" Shane started, but suddenly realized what he was saying and stopped talking.

"Anyway, I guess this is goodbye, then…" Kris said.

"What? Oh, no! No no no!"

"What do you mean 'no'? You said you were going to see your relatives here?"

"That?" Shane said and hand waved it away. "That was a lie. I was just embarrassed to tell you this, but… I'm actually looking for legendary Pokémon. There's no particular reason. Some people collect stamps and others make harassing phone calls. More than anything, I want to see them and get information from them. It's the only thing that I have in my otherwise boring life."

Shane then looked at Kris, anxious to see her reaction, but surprisingly, she didn't laugh. She just stood there and seemed to be digesting Shane's words.

"So…" she said after some thinking. "That's why you met all those people? And that's why you asked the Wise Trio to join the Legendary Society, right?"

"Yeah."

"Well, there was no reason to lie to me. I understand that. We all have to have some objective, a dream of some sorts. So, what are you going to do now?"

"I don't know… I can't stay here if I want to do anything, that's for sure. But I still need to come back here if that leader whateverhisnameis guy decides to return."

"You know, what?" Kris said. "You can come with me. I could use someone to talk to besides Pokémon. People will think I'm crazy."

"Well, you are a bit…" Shane said, until he realized what Kris was talking about. "I mean, scratch that! I can come with you? That's so great! You won't regret this! Oh man, we're going to have so much to talk about! For instance, I was surprised that you didn't know that Ghost-types are unaffected by Normal-type moves…"

As Shane and Kris prepared to leave Ecruteak City and head to their next destination, Kris was already regretting this idea.


	13. Useless Side Quests

**Chapter Thirteen: _Useless Side Quests_**

October 31st: "_I can't believe my luck. Really, it's not every day when you run into the perfect woman: she's not that good-looking, so she's not out of my league or anything. And yet, she's smart, spunky, politically correct and all that shizz. Sure, she's a bit impatient, occasionally rude, cynical and insults me quite often, but she's eased up on me. After all, she agreed that I could travel with her for the time being. And besides, everyone has flaws. Except for me, though._"

November 3rd: "_It's getting mighty cold out here, but the thought of getting to Olivine City (soon, I hope) is keeping me warm. We were allowed to spend two nights at the MooMoo Farm, which is apparently a Miltank farm that sells MooMoo milk to people for ridiculously high prices. Well, except that this time, they didn't. Their prized Miltank was sick, so, we did the right thing: we got the hell out of there as soon as we found that out! We don't want to get some cow disease or something. Ick!_"

November 5th: "_Holy macaroni, Route 38 sure is long! Mind you, it didn't seem this long in the map. Well, at least we won't encounter any irrelevant filler events here, like in that strange cartoon show. I can't remember the name, but anyway, it was really bad. I mean, **really** bad. Kris keeps constantly talking about getting to the Silver Conference before Gold does. I'm assuming that Gold is kind of a rival to Kris, even though they haven't really met after he left New Bark Town just a little before Kris did. I feel for her. She's not the only one who had to stand obnoxious rivals._"

Finally, when November 6th came, Shane and Kris arrived to Olivine City. It was actually a very nice port town, without any unfriendly inhabitants or tedious side quests in the distance. At first, Shane and Kris visited the Pokémon Center, but strangely enough, the gym was closed. Or at least, the gym leader was not present. Disappointed, they decided to head to the local café, which was mainly inhabited by rough-looking sailors. As soon as Kris and Shane got some drinks and sat down, a strange old man started talking to them.

"New in town, huh?" he asked.

Kris and Shane glanced at each other, then looked behind them and saw the strange old man, wearing a robe and having a hood that obscured his face. He had very long, gray beard that only further made him appear quite frail and elderly.

"Well, we-"

"You're rookies, both of you, aren't you?" he asked before Kris could say anything.

"Hey, I'm no rookie. I have three badges" Kris said, and when Shane coughed, she added: "Oh yeah, and I guess Shane has three badges as well."

"Three badges?" the old man repeated and laughed. "Listen, lady, I have about fifty badges by now, and I have traveled around the world for fifty years. I think it's easy to tell which one of us is the rookie."

"He's got you there, Kris" Shane remarked and took a sip from his drink.

"Who are you, then?" Kris asked, with a deliberately rude tone.

"For now, I'm your guide to the tricks of the trade" the man said and sat next to Shane and Kris. "In fact, they call me the 'Guide Gent', because my name is Gent. I think. I used to live in Cherrygrove City and I was supposed to meet you there, but the writers forgot all about me so now I'm here."

"What? Listen, we're not buying into any tricks" Shane said. "This guy already ripped me off earlier and it cost me my life savings!"

"This is far from a trick" Guide Gent said coldly. "But if you're so doubtful, then go ahead. Don't accept my training. But I'd like to remind you, that it's completely free."

"Free?" Shane said. "OK, then we're on. Right, Kris?"

Kris, however, was more skeptical.

"Free? So what's it to you, then?"

"Nothing pleases an old man better than seeing this region to be inhabited by better Pokémon trainers. Seriously, everyone here is so weak. Even the Elite Four have ridiculously low-leveled Pokémon. It makes me sick! I'd like to see even one great trainer emerge from here, but so far, there's only one notable person born in Johto who has ever achieved anything! And he's the freaking Pokémon League Champion, Lance! Now, I don't have all day. Are you in or out?"

Kris and Shane looked at each other, and in unison, they agreed: "We're in!"

For the remainder of the day, Shane, Kris and Guide Gent trained near the outskirts of Olivine City. Guide Gent taught them everything, but took special interest in Kris, not in any dirty way, of course. It was just because Kris was obviously more into training and battling while Shane was more of a 'befriending'-kind of guy. Nevertheless, they both learned important things. Guide Gent not only put them through rigorous and energy-consuming training, including jogging and lifting weights, but also lectured them about strange training-related jargon: effort values, type matches, same-type attack bonuses, different kinds of moves and so on. Most of all, Gent pressured the importance of survival, and doing their utmost to win a battle.

Unlike most other coaches, Gent did not cram the idea of loving your Pokémon and treating it with care. Still, Gent did pressure the importance of respect, and for a reason: one could easily be squished by a Donphan or mauled by an Ursaring if one wasn't careful. By the end of the day, Shane hadn't learned much, since he never really paid attention, but Kris, on the other hand, had gotten a lot stronger. At the end of the day, they bid farewell to Guide Gent, who then disappeared into the darkness. To test her newfound strength, Kris decided to climb on top of the lighthouse to challenge the trainers that supposedly were training there. Gent had also mentioned that the Olivine Gym Leader, Jasmine, was spending time at the Lighthouse for some reason. Naturally, Kris wanted to confront the leader.

Needless to say, Kris opened a can of whoopass on every Pokémon Trainer in the Lighthouse, using her Totodile, Butterfree, Murkrow, Misdreavus and Sudowoodo in perfect rhythm, changing back and forth between them and raising their individual strengths. The battles were so masterful that it would be a waste of space to describe them here.

Eventually, Shane and Kris successfully climbed to the topmost floor of the lighthouse - only to find that something strange was going on. The local gym leader, a meek and quiet girl called Jasmine was obviously not in the mood for a fight, as she was nursing a sick-looking Pokémon. It was an Ampharos, a tall, yellow, bipedal Pokémon, obviously an Electric-type that looked vaguely like a tall, bipedal sheep - only with less wool. Jasmine noticed Shane and Kris, but paid little attention to them; she was struggling to get the sick Ampharos to eat something.

"Come on, Amphy!" she said, then sighed. "It hasn't eaten anything in days. I'm sorry, you two, but I have no plans of returning to the gym before Amphy gets better!"

"Oh, rats!" Kris said, suppressing her anger. "Well, isn't there something we can do?"

"Actually, there is something…" Jasmine said softly. "A while ago, this dude called Gold offered to pick up some Secretpotion for me from Cianwood City. It's a very strong medicine and, coincidentally enough, it's only sold at the Cianwood City Pharmacy. He never returned, and it's been a month already. Um… is it OK for me to ask you to get some Secretpotion for me?"

"No way, ho!" Shane said. "Get your own damn potions!"

"I apologize for my friend here" Kris said. "He's an idiot. We're heading to Cianwood City anyway, so we'll send some potion for you."

Shane didn't seem to mind being called an idiot - just the fact that Kris called Shane her 'friend' was enough to please him. With that, the duo left the Lighthouse and climbed all the way down.

"How are we supposed to get to Cianwood?" Shane asked.

"Easy enough" Kris replied. "We'll take the ferry. As it happens, there's one leaving in a few minutes!"

It was a good thing that Olivine was a relatively small town. Kris and Shane could easily walk to the harbor, which was loaded with ships and boats, and even the world cruiser S.S. Aqua was there. But most importantly, a ferry heading towards Cianwood City was just about to leave. As they walked towards the ticket booth, they chatted along the way.

"Hey, did you hear Jasmine mentioning Gold back there?" Kris asked excitedly.

"Sure. What about him?"

"Well, she said that he has been missing for a month. A _month_. Something horrible must have happened to him! Isn't that great?"

"Great?" Shane asked, slightly freaked out by this. "I don't see what's so great about that…"

"Well, if he's in some potentially dangerous situation, I can save him, and then people will finally respect me as well" Kris said with a crazy look on her face. "Hey, maybe he's dead! Then I wouldn't have a rival at all!"

"That would be great!" Shane said. "I certainly hope, that… Oh no! NOT NOW!"

"What is it?" Kris asked, when Shane seemed to be horrified by something.

"It's freaking him! It's Damien!"

Kris looked around, then realized that Shane was pointing at the man directly in front of them in the line, a tall, blonde-haired trainer. Damien turned around with a smug smirk on his face.

"Well, well…" he said. "Shane Stephens. Long time, no ocean. Hah, get it, 'ocean'?"

"Oh, man…" Shane moaned. "Yeah, nice to see you, Damien. Uh, Kris, this is Damien Zachowski, Damien, this is Kris Zimmerman."

"My, my…" Damien said and focused his attention towards Kris. "Shane, where on earth did you find this gorgeous lady? Tell me, my dear, why are you hanging out with a guy like him? He's probably gay or something, so why not join me, so we can take a few drinks at the S.S. Aqua bar and you can enjoy my ever-so-whimsical anecdotes, mm?"

"Well, no thanks" Kris replied in a faux-polite tone. "You seem like a horrible person, and I'd rather have my own tongue be hacked into pieces and fed to me."

"Tch, too bad, my dear" Damien said, and realized that he was next in line. "We could have been something. Fortunately, I've got plenty of dates. By the way, Shane, that girl you hanged around with in Kanto, Leaf, I think, kept me company during the Pokémon League, if you know what I mean."

Damien then approached the ticket booth to buy a ticket for the ferry, while Shane tried to explain Kris that the 'girl in Kanto' was just a friend, or not even that.

"Hello, there, Mrs. Salesperson" he said smugly. "How many tickets do you have left?"

"You're in luck" the woman in the booth said. "There's only three tickets left!"

"Is that so?" Damien said, looked behind him and continued: "In that case, I'll buy all three. I like to rest my feet."

"Works with me" the lady said.

With that, Damien was given the last tickets for the ferry, and the booth was closed, with a 'Sold Out'-note being attached to it. Damien merely laughed at Shane and Kris as he boarded the ferry, and the ferry just took off, leaving Shane and Kris standing at the harbor.

"So, that was your rival, huh?" Kris said in a deadpan tone.

"Yeah" Shane replied.

"He's a douchebag."

"I know."

"Well, seriously, how are we going to get to Cianwood City now? The next ferry isn't leaving until tomorrow!"

"Aren't you forgetting something?" Shane reminded. "Today is Friday. That means the next ferry isn't going to leave in…"

Shane paused to think, but since he was never really good at math, Kris had to help him:

"In three days."

"In three days, right. So, I don't know, maybe we should rent a rowboat?"

"A boat?" Kris said. "Is that the best you can think of? You do realize that it's going to be incredibly dangerous. Besides, it's insanely dark out there!"

"Yeah, but I have a plan that can't fail!" Shane announced, excited about this. "We rent a boat and start sailing towards Cianwood. After rowing towards the island for a while, we stop and go to sleep. The next morning, when we wake up, we'll be there! It always works in movies!"

"You know, that's crazy" Kris said. "But it's crazy enough to work, so, why not?"

**...**

Surprisingly enough, as the next morning came, Shane and Kris had succeeded. They had done exactly as Shane said, and had drifted all the way to Cianwood City in the process, as the standard plot guidelines say. Having arrived to Cianwood, they decided not to waste time, and went straight to the pharmacy, which was, fortunately enough, open. They bought a bottle of Secretpotion and decided to send it to Jasmine, along with the bill. As there was no other alternative, they had to use Kris' Murkrow to deliver the package to Olivine, but Kris was sure that the bird could handle this task.

It was still too early for anything to be open, including the gym. So, Kris and Shane headed to the Pokémon Center, where they only saw one person, a man sitting quietly on a bench and looking depressed. As Kris healed her Pokémon, Shane approached the man in his usual, jolly demeanor:

"Hello there, sport!" Shane said. "Say, is there anything to do here on this isolated little island?"

"I wouldn't know about that" the man replied, his every word sounding bitter and depressed. "My first Pokémon was stolen from me, and all I have left is my lousy Shuckle."

"Your Pokémon was a stolen, huh? That's a drag…"

"Yeah, my prized Sneasel…" the man lamented. "What I can say, I was overpowered. It was this red-haired guy with piercing eyes, cruel to his Pokémon and everything. He just barged into my house, forced me to release my Sneasel, which he then captured himself. And I was such a wimp that I couldn't defend myself."

"Well, if I ever run into that guy, I'll tell him straight. Hey, wait a minute…" Shane said and thought for a moment. "I wonder if there's a place where I can get a breakfast…"

"Shane, come on!" Kris called from the front door. "The nurse told me about this creepy lady who can see into the future! Let's go there!"

"OK, let's go!" Shane said, then talked at the man again: "Well, take care now. Try to… you know, forget about it. Later!"

After once again failing to understand anything, Shane left with Kris as they walked towards north, passing several houses on their way. They walked all the way to the shore, to the most northern part of Cianwood City, where the supposed Poké Seer lived in a small, creaky shack.

Even though Shane tried to talk Kris to drop the idea, they entered the shack any way. Kris knew that Shane was scared, even though Shane tried to cover it up by saying that he didn't believe in psychic powers… despite having witnessed them before. Kris approached the door, but before she could knock, the duo heard a voice from the inside:

"Come in! I foresaw your arrival!"

"Wow, she's good!" Kris said.

"Oh, please, she obviously saw us from the window or something!"

"Come on, you scaredy cat" Kris said. "I don't really believe in these things anyway, but it could be fun, and I'm bored."

Shane sighed and silently shuddered when he and Kris entered the Poké Seer's cabin. It was incredibly small, filled with stereotypical ornaments and jewelry and smelled weird as well. Not only that, but Shane always had a fear of fortunetellers and gypsies, so he was quite unnerved by the situation.

"Sit down, my young friends" said the seer, a small, old lady. "I can see into your future, and all this for just one thousand whatevers."

"One thousand whatevers? Listen, you old hag!" Shane shouted. "I can't afford that. I was just scammed out of money recently. Besides, this is just a hoax anyway."

"Perhaps you would like to get your future read by my _assistant_ instead. It's free" the seer said.

"Well, it was about time!"

"You can find my assistant in the room nearby."

Shane marched through the curtains and to an even smaller and smellier room. It had a table similar to the seers, two chairs and a crystal ball on the table. Unfortunately enough, the seer's 'assistant' turned out to be her Pokémon: a Xatu, a Psychic-type, bird-resembling Pokémon. Shane wasn't completely stupid, so after staring blankly at the Xatu for a few minutes, he marched out of the room, realizing that the seer had insulted him. Probably. Nevertheless, Kris decided to stay and have her future told.

After Kris paid up, the seer activated her crystal ball, which started glowing and emitting strange colors.

"Yes… Yes, I can see it now…" the seer announced dramatically as she watched the crystal ball. "Your future is all clear to me now. I see… I see a great threat, no, several great threats looming above. Great dangers… I cannot see if you survive them or not… great victories… great defeats…"

"Hey, can you see if I can defeat the local gym leader, Chuck?" Kris asked.

"I cannot see so clearly yet…" the seer said while keeping her palm open.

Kris realized the hint and gave the seer one hundred whatevers more.

"Oh yes, you will defeat Chuck!" the seer said, much to Kris' enthusiasm. "I also see… oh, great perils. The ones you trust most will turn their back at you. I see… flames, death, oppression, brutality and plenty of albums from Lady Gaga!"

"Oh, no!" Kris gasped.

"I see something more… a man, and important man… but who? The ball does not tell… It is not too clear…"

"Look, ma'am," Kris said, visibly unnerved by the situation as well. "I'm starting to get freaked out here. Keep the change, I… Yeah, farewell!"

Kris stormed out of the seer's shack, but the seer kept on looking into Kris' future, completely entranced by her own powers.

"Yes… She will indeed face horrors most unspeakable… Will she survive? Possibly… Will the others survive? It is not certain… Oh, this is interesting… What's that? Oh, no. Its-"

**...**

Meanwhile, as Shane was waiting for Kris to get finished with the fortunetelling, he walked around the beach, watching the sea and observing the numerous Krabby walking along the beach. As he looked around, he saw something that caught his interest: the beautiful, blue aurora Pokémon, Suicune, standing perfectly still just about a dozen yards away from him. Shane couldn't even move a muscle when Suicune seemed to notice him, and in a blink of an eye, ran away with immense speed.

Shane was so bewildered by this sight that he couldn't even hear the sound of a car engine, approaching all the time. Then, he turned around.

"Oh fu-"

The car stopped just near Shane, knocking Shane over and the driver running over Shane, leaving him trapped under the car. The driver was, obviously enough, none other than Eusine, who seemed to be extremely disappointed about just missing Suicune once again. He was completely oblivious to the fact that he ran Shane over with his car.

"Hey! Get your car off me, you idiot!"

"Who said that?" Eusine said, looked around wildly and peeked under the car. "Shane? What are you doing there?"

"You ran me over, you maniac!" Shane said and crawled out and got back up. "What are you doing here, other than hitting people with your car?"

"I was just about to get a good glimpse of Suicune, but then it ran away!" Eusine lamented as he stared at the ocean.

"Well, maybe you should try a more quiet approach" Shane suggested. "You know, your car makes a lot of noise."

"Shut up! And I have to ask you, Shane, what are _you _doing here? I have to warn you, stay out of my way. If I ever see you in the same spot as Suicune again, I'm… Well, I'm going to draw my own conclusions! Goodbye!"

Without even offering to challenge Shane into a battle or recognizing that Shane had encountered Suicune, Eusine hopped back on his car and drove away. Shane returned to the seer's cabin, where he saw Kris just as she was leaving the place.

"Hey, Kris, what happened? I thought you paid for the hour?"

"Nah, you were right" Kris admitted, this being the first time she ever admitted being wrong. "I shouldn't believe in that nonsense. Now let's go! I need to challenge Chuck. I have a good feeling that I can beat him!"


	14. Fun at the whirlpools

**Chapter Fourteen: _Fun at the whirlpools_**

Moments after challenging Chuck, Kris managed to obtain the Storm Badge, proof that she had defeated Chuck, the Cianwood City Gym Leader. Since Kris, was obviously enough, in a hurry, as the Silver Conference was going to be held December 6th - which meant that Kris had one month left to earn four more badges. This meant that Kris and Shane had no time to wait for two days until the ferry arrived. So, to get back to Olivine City, they decided to go with the same method that they used to get to Cianwood - falling asleep on the boat and hoping that it would drift to their destination.

Except that this time, it didn't work. When Kris and Shane woke up the next Sunday, they wound up being almost stuck in a whirlpool, twirling around and around in the boat, until they finally got out, only to crash their boat on one of the Whirl Islands.

However, instead of arriving to a deserted, faraway island like they thought they would, they found themselves being in a large group of people, all pushing each other and trying to get inside a large building in a distance. After being thoroughly confused for a while, Kris eventually found a poster attached to a tree.

"The bi-annual Whirl Cup, November 7th" Kris read. "The ultimate Water-type Pokémon tournament. Holy crap, Shane. We have got to enter this!"

"I thought we were in a hurry."

"Sure we are, but this is a once-in-a-lifetime chance" Kris argued. "Besides, how often does one encounter a huge contest just randomly held on a deserted island? That's what I thought. Now come on, I need some training, and I'm sure you'll done fine as well!"

"You sure that you're sure?" Shane asked, but nevertheless accompanied Kris as the two marched in with the rest of the crowd to enter the Whirl Cup.

After the signing was done, about fifty competitors gathered to the Whirl Cup Arena, while several hundred spectators watched from the sidelines. A fat, jolly man in a suit, as always, prepared to announce the Cup:

"Welcome to the Whirl Cup, the ultimate water-type Pokémon contest. Of course, there are certain rules that you contestants need to obey, or otherwise, you shall be disqualified. The most important rule, is, of course, that you get to use only three Pokémon throughout the three rounds of the Cup. Remember, three Pokémon only. Next of all, two of those Pokémon have to be of the water-type. Seeing as there could be complications otherwise, we have added a place where one can rent water-type Pokémon for a minor fee. The third rule is that the third Pokémon used by the contestant must be of the flying-type, or able to fly or float in other way, because the final battle round takes place in water, of course."

"Now, on to the rounds. There are three rounds: the appeal round, where we judge your Pokémon to see if they're fit for the contest. Remember, no putting makeup on your Magikarp, or you will be disqualified. The remaining 24 contestants that are left from the appeal rounds shall then advance to the race round, where the contestants must use one of their water-types to race from start to finish. The first eight will then advance to the third round, where we shall have randomly selected partners battle each other. The winners advance further on, and the last one standing will be crowned the Champion of the Whirl Cup."

Shane grinned at this possibility: for once, he had an opportunity to win at something.

"And now," the announcer said. "Put your hands together, please, for the host, the star of the show, the main judge and the sponsor of this contest, brought to you by Wallace's **K**rispy **K**ream **K**rackers, here's the Head Coordinator and Pokémon League Champion of Hoenn: Wallace!"

And with that, the stage was completely taken over by an extremely tall and handsome man, even in Shane's opinion. This blue-haired man took silly clothes to the extreme: he was wearing rather flamboyant, even feminine bluish clothes and a huge, white cape, causing him to look even more ridiculous than Eusine.

"Hi, people!" Wallace shouted in the microphone, and caused an instant storm of applause, whilst Shane and Kris didn't seem to have any idea on what his case was. "Well, I'm totally hoping that we have a fabulous contest here today, and well, I hope everyone has a super time. Later!"

With that quote, Wallace abruptly left, much to the confusion of the announcer, who nevertheless saved the situation:

"Uh… that was Wallace, everybody! Now, we're taking a break here, and in an hour, our contestants will begin the appeal round. Don't miss it!"

Shane and Kris, who were rather shocked by these fascist rules, immediately rushed out to get some Pokémon in order to apply for the Cup. Kris was able to rent a Qwilfish from the local vendor, but Shane had no money, and as such, panicked and almost resorted to fishing for a water Pokémon, when he suddenly remembered that Swirly wasn't his only water-type.

Shane contacted Ferguson through a video phone found nearby, and thanks to the transfer machine that was also somehow found nearby, Shane received a Poké Ball containing his Staryu.

"Now, I hope you don't mind, but during your absence, I made some… modifications to your Staryu…" Ferguson said over the phone.

"Modifications? What do you mean?" Shane asked.

"See for yourself. Let's just say that I had an extra Water Stone around…"

Shane opened the Poké Ball, but instead of the brown little Staryu, a larger, violet star-shaped Pokémon which was now shaped like a ten-pointed star instead of a five-pointed one like Staryu. This was its evolved form, Starmie, and in Shane's opinion, this Pokémon was magnificent. Sure it didn't seem to have a face or any limbs, but the its central jewel was even bigger than Staryu's and seemed to shine in all the colors of the rainbow.

"Awesome…" Shane whispered.

"Yeah, I thought it could be more useful if I evolved it" Ferguson said. "Now, good luck with the Whirl Cup. I would come visit to see you, but… well, I don't want to. Oh, and by the way, I taught Starmie some new moves it could make use of, like Thunderbolt, Recover, Ice Beam, Psychic and so on. Enjoy!"

As Kris and Shane prepared their own Pokémon, Kris deciding to use Butterfree as a third one while Shane used his Golbat, nicknamed Zuba, another person wanted to enter the contest. None other than the infamous comic relief character/wackjob villain Fernando, lurked at the entrance of the Whirl Cup, reading the rules. Unfortunately, Fernando didn't have any water-type Pokémon with him, leading him to try and use extreme measures. He released his Ditto from its Poké Ball, telling it to look into the water and transform into the first Pokémon it saw.

"…unless it's a Magikarp" he added. "Well? What do you see?"

Ditto stared at the water intensely, then, apparently it saw something, because it started glowing and transforming, growing bigger and bigger as Fernando watched in mix of fear and awe. Finally, Ditto finished transforming: it had transformed into an enormous, blue, dragon-like Pokémon, Gyarados, the evolved form of Magikarp.

"My stars, a Gyarados! My chances of winning this petty tournament are steadily increasing…" Fernando thought. "Where did you see a Gyarados?"

The Ditto-turned-Gyarados looked into the water, and Fernando leaned closer to take a peek.

"I don't… Wait a minute, there's one! It's awfully small… no, wait! It's getting bigger! And bigger! And it's getting closer! Hang on a second. It's-"

The resulting destruction caused by the Gyarados wreaking havoc at Fernando and Ditto is best left to be pictured in your heads. Rest assured, Fernando got better. During Fernando's little scuffle with the Gyarados, Kris and Shane had already entered the appeal round. The amount of competitors was too large to make heads or tails from, so Shane and Kris couldn't really identify with any of the other competitors.

Shane's Pokémon, while not adept fighters, did relatively well during the appeals. Shane's Poliwhirl, Swirly, liked to show off its muscles, while Starmie was especially adored for its beauty. Surprisingly, Kris' Totodile, Butterfree and Qwilfish didn't attract as much attention, but there was one particular Pokémon that stole the show: a magnificent Octillery, an octopus-like Pokémon and the evolved form of Remoraid. Even Wallace himself descended to the midst of the competitors to evaluate the Octillery and praised how well it was taken care of. At first, Shane and Kris couldn't see whose Octillery it was - until the trainer appeared on the jumbo screen. Shane and Kris felt an immediate gag reflex when the trainer's smug and arrogant face appeared on the screen - sure enough, it was Damien Zachowski, still up to his old tricks. They listened Damien's hollow words about his Pokémon, but they really knew that Damien was merely praising himself. The appeal round eliminated most of the competition, but fortunately to Shane and Kris, they both made it to the second round, and obviously enough, Damien did so as well.

After the appeal round was over, Shane and Kris had the chance to confront Damien before the second round - albeit unwillingly. Damien merely marched in front of Shane and Kris to show off his Pokémon.

"Why, what a coincidence!" Damien remarked. "Looks like you made it here after all!"

"No thanks to you!" Shane said. "But it was my superb navigational skills that got us to Cianwood and here, right Kris?"

"I'm not even going to bother to argue…" Kris said, then continued to Damien: "Where did you get that Octillery?"

"Hey, I've been around, more than you two, I would have to say. I caught a Remoraid near Mahogany Town, and when it evolved into a Octillery, I used it to defeat the gym leader in that town. Hell, I've already got six badges from this region!"

"Yeah, well…" Shane said, unable to think of a proper insult. "Your… Your Octillery is a real eyesore!"

"Say what you will, Shane, but me and my Octillery will, without a doubt, crush your pathetic Pokémon, if not during the race, then at least in the finals. I swear it! Later!"

Damien marched away, leaving Shane more infuriated than ever. Kris, who merely found Damien to be a minor annoyance, wasn't so affected, but was more interested to the noises he heard from behind the corner. It was the voice of a trainer, who sounded quite familiar.

"Shane, listen!" she said. "I hear something?"

Shane and Kris listened intently and sneaked closer, as their curiosity got the best of them.

"You pathetic wretch! What kind of appeal was that? I swear, one last screwup and I'll leave you stranded here!"

Behind the corner, a cruel, red-haired trainer who Shane and Kris knew only too well was abusing his Tentacruel. Apparently, Silver was in the Whirl Cup too, among those who made past the appeal round, but only barely.

"Silver!"

Silver turned around when he saw Kris and Shane calling at him, and tried to keep up his usual, hateful demeanor.

"Hmph, you two again" Silver said. "I thought I saw you during the appeal round. Just so you know, me and my Pokémon will make sure you won't get past the second round!"

"You stole another Pokémon earlier, didn't you?" Shane asked and tried to make himself as threatening as possible, failing of course.

"I don't know what you're talking about" Silver said and took a Poké Ball from his pocket. "But while visiting Cianwood and defeating that weak, old gym leader Chuck, I also acquired this amazing Pokémon. Watch!"

Silver opened the Poké Ball, showing Shane and Kris a small but feisty-looking black Pokémon with extremely sharp claws.

"So that's the Sneasel…" Shane said. "You stole it from that guy in Cianwood, I'm sure, even though I didn't get it until just now!"

"Psst!"

Shane, Kris and Silver stopped their bickering when a shady-looking character, resembling a drug dealer from any 50's educational movie, called for them, hiding behind a corner.

"Hey, you three. If you want to win the Whirl Cup, I've got a little 'something something' here that will assure your victory, perfectly legal!"

"If it's perfectly legal, then how come you're lurking over there?" Kris asked.

"How should I know, just come here!"

Silver merely scoffed at this dealer, recalled his Tentacruel and Sneasel and walked away, but Shane and Kris approached the dealer, who immediately handed them a bag containing all sorts of strange goodies.

"Now, you, dude!" the dealer told Shane. " I saw you using a Poliwhirl, but it wouldn't it be cooler if you evolved it to something even stronger? Now, don't answer that, I know the answer is yes. So here you go, a brand new Water Stone, only 3000 whatevers, today only!"

"Wow, thanks!" Shane said and took the stone. "Too bad I can't afford this, but I'm sure Kris will cover the expenses for me, right?"

"Sure, but you need to pay me back!" Kris said. "Do you have anything for my Totodile?"

The dealer dug deeper, until he found a small piece of candy from the bag.

"Oh, this!" the dealer said. "This is a magnificent artifact known as the 'Rare Candy', it instantly gives your Pokémon more might, whatever it is!"

"This piece of candy?" Kris said in her usual, hesitant way. "How much is it?"

"Just five. Five thousand whatevers, that is."

"What? OVER FIVE THOUSAAAAND?" Kris shouted, but decided to pay up anyway to avoid repeating any more over-used memes.

"Just so you know, Shane, from now on, we're not eating anything until I get more money!"

"Piece of cake!" Shane said. "I mean, I'm not even thinking about food right now. Oh wait, yes I am. Damn it!"

With the dealer gone, 8000 whatevers richer, Shane and Kris decided to test their new artifacts. Shane tried his Water Stone first, prompting Swirly to touch the stone. Immediately after touching it, Swirly started to glow, and from a mild-mannered Poliwhirl, it basically grew into a larger and more muscular version of itself, a Poliwrath. Shane decided to keep the nickname 'Swirly' anyway. Kris tried next, and fed her Totodile the Rare Candy.

"How is it?" Kris asked, despite knowing that Totodile couldn't respond.

For a moment, Totodile just chewed at the candy, savoring the obviously delightful taste. After a moment of chewing, Totodile swallowed the candy. At first, nothing happened. Then, Totodile started glowing as well, evolving into a more vicious-looking version of itself, a Croconaw.

"Yes! It worked!" Kris cheered, just as an intercom announced that the race round was about to begin.

To avoid wasting anymore space, let's just say that the race round went surprisingly well. Just as the case was with the appeal round, Damien was undoubtedly the winner of the race: his Octillery was just unmatched in speed, which was strange, since it was incredibly slow on land. Still, Shane didn't drop out either, as he placed right second, much thanks to his Starmie. He was about to use Poliwrath at first, but Kris suggested that he should save it for the final round. Kris and Silver also made it to the third round, along with four others.

After the incredibly exciting water Pokémon race, a short break was held. When the break was over, the host arrived to introduce the final round:

"Congratulations to the eight of you who made it to the final round. During this final round, you will be battling against each other. The losers will drop as the winners advance further on. Now, we shall randomly decide, who gets to battle whom!"

The host pulled names out randomly, announcing the battle partners. Shane kept his fingers crossed and hoped that he didn't have to battle Kris or Damien, knowing that they would be too tough for him. Shane already had a bad feeling about things, since he figured that battling wasn't his strong point. He felt immense relief when both Kris and Damien were chosen to battle against two random strangers. After another two random, unimportant people were chosen to battle each other, Shane realized that the last battle partners would be: him and Silver! Silver didn't seem to be so keen on the idea either, but there was no other choice. The final round was commencing.

During the battle, competitors were allowed to use all three of their Pokémon, and at first, Damien was chosen to battle a random competitor. Using his Octillery, Azumarill and Fearow, Damien obviously kicked ass and beat his adversary. Kris didn't do so bad either: while she struggled to do well with her rented Qwilfish, her Butterfree and Croconaw were good enough to make Kris advance to the semifinals. After another predicable match, it was Shane versus Silver.

Shane had decided that he would win: he had gotten this far, and even though it was just a small-time water-type tournament, it was important to him. At first, Shane pitted his Golbat against Silver's Tentacruel, which he chose immediately to go with full power. And strong it was indeed: Zuba didn't stand a chance when it was taken down by Tentacruel's Ice Beam. So, Shane decided to go with Starmie. Thanks to its Thunderbolt, it actually defeated Tentacruel with relative ease, despite Tentacruel's defensive capabilities. Next in line was Silver's Seaking, and while Starmie tried to use Thunderbolt, Seaking was able to dodge Starmie's attacks and strike Starmie with Megahorn, knocking it out. Shane's last Pokémon was his best one: the strong Poliwrath, Swirly. While Seaking had a sharp horn and great speed, it was still unable to cope with Poliwrath's power, and with one swift Brick Break, Seaking was down.

In the end, it was Silver's stolen, but well-behaving Sneasel versus Shane's Poliwrath. Somehow, Silver managed to sneak Sneasel into the contest, and it was understandable, because not only was it able to swim, it was also able to jump long distances, being equal to being able to fly. Considering that Sneasel was both Dark- and Ice-type, it should have gone down incredibly easily. But Poliwrath's newfound strength made it clumsy, and it was unable to hit the incredibly fast Sneasel, so after attacking Poliwrath multiple time with Slash, Poliwrath was down, making Silver the winner.

"NO!" Shane shouted as he recalled Poliwrath, but he wasn't too disappointed. He pulled off a great battle, after all. "Oh well, life goes on."

Surprisingly enough, Silver didn't gloat about his victory at all. Without even bothering to thank his Sneasel, he recalled it and walked away, while scoffing at Shane's 'weakness'. Shane took a spot from the sidelines as he watched the next battles. Damien was pitted against a relatively unknown trainer from Olivine City, and without even putting much effort to it, won, while gloating about it all the time. Now that Damien was surely going to be in the final match, his adversary would be decided in the next battle: Kris or Silver?

As Kris and Silver began their battle, Silver tried a different technique, and tried Sneasel first. Once again, the sheer speed of his Sneasel was too much for Kris' rented Qwilfish, which lost instantly. Kris' Butterfree, however, was able to defeat Sneasel with Signal Beam. Kris handled her Butterfree well, as when Silver tried to use his Seaking next, Butterfree merely put it to sleep with Sleep Powder, then attacked Seaking with Mega Drain, taking it out. But Butterfree was growing tired, and when Silver used his Tentacruel, Butterfree was easily taken down by Tentacruel's Poison Jab.

With both Silver and Kris having only one Pokémon left, Kris used her Croconaw against Silver's Tentacruel. Croconaw was a fast swimmer, but it found that the Tentacruel had the advantage thanks to its size. Croconaw couldn't get a decent hit because Tentacruel kept slamming it away with its tentacles. Eventually, Kris told Croconaw to use Bite on the tentacles, causing Tentacruel to panic. When Croconaw finished its attack with Slam, Tentacruel was out.

"Yes! Good job, Croconaw, we won!" Kris cheered as the audience applauded, but no one applauded harder than Shane, who was not only glad to see Silver get his comeuppance, but felt genuine joy for Kris' victory.

Silver, on the other hand, did not take his loss well. His defeat over Shane made him too confident, and for losing, Silver merely threw a tantrum, but managed to suppress his rage and merely walk away. Kris, however, could swear that he heard Silver threatening his Tentacruel during the match.

The final battle was between Damien and Kris. Even Wallace seemed to take interest, as he had mostly slept through the previous matches. As the battle began, Kris chose her Butterfree while Damien went with his Azumarill. While Butterfree had some time to rest, it was still unable to get a good shot at Azumarill, who froze Butterfree with its Ice Beam, then knocked Butterfree out with its Rollout-attack. Kris' Qwilfish did better, as it was able to poison Azumarill, and slowly sapped its HP. Next, Damien used his Fearow, which beat Qwilfish with a single Drill Peck, thanks to its power and sheer size difference.

But even Fearow couldn't handle against Kris' Croconaw, who had previously mastered Ice Punch. As soon as Fearow got close enough to attempt an attack, Kris told Croconaw to use Ice Punch, immediately knocking Fearow out. The final battle was between Damien's Octillery and Kris' Croconaw. Even Damien showed signs of being nervous, as he kept sweating and made his attack orders in a surprisingly high-pitched voice. Croconaw's Bite- and Slam-attacks did damage, but Octillery was quite sturdy, and after blinding Croconaw with Smokescreen, Octillery used Charge Beam, an electric-type attack which was super-effective against Croconaw, knocking it out.

For a while, Damien didn't even realize that the match was over. When Damien was finally announced as a winner, he decided to throw away his dignity and threw himself in the water, screaming his own name in triumph. The sheer sight of this was too disgusting for Shane and Kris, so they decided to let Damien keep his victory and left the Whirl Cup arena.

As they walked towards their boat, they saw Silver in a distance, once again punishing his Tentacruel. But this time, he was doing even something more cruel - releasing it:

"What was wrong with you back there? How could you let that stupid crocodile bite your tentacle? I have had it with you. I thought you would bring me money and power, but now, I'm going to have to release you. Farewell!"

To amplify his point, Silver pressed a button in his Poké Ball, bathing Tentacruel in a blue glow. When this was over, Silver threw the Poké Ball on the ground, causing it to shatter in pieces. The Tentacruel was now released, but it merely stood still on the water, looking sad as Silver marched away.

At this moment, Shane and Kris could only feel deep hatred towards Silver, but surprisingly, someone else was willing to adopt the Tentacruel, as the person threw a Poké Ball towards the Tentacruel:

"Don't worry, Tentacruel. I can be your new owner!"

The person was none other than Wallace. Seeing this celebrity in person, Shane and Kris could only stare with their mouths open.

"Thanks for the fabulous contest, guys. Your name was Shane, right, and you were… Kris, right? That's great, listen, I received word that you were coming, so, like, follow me to my office, kay?"

Shane and Kris were confused, but since they thought that Wallace couldn't be a criminal or anything, they followed him to back to the arena. They avoided the people flooding away from the arena and followed Wallace to his office. As Wallace ensured that there were no people in the vicinity, he started talking again, but this time, he didn't sound feminine and flamboyant, but actually had a rather low, masculine voice:

"Sorry about that act, but I don't want to lose my show persona, because I wouldn't be interesting enough if I sounded like this!" Wallace said. "For some reason, men, or at least straight men, are always looked down when they want to be coordinators, can you imagine that? So, I have to appear as flamboyant as possible. Anyway, follow me. There's someone in my office who wants to see you!"

In Wallace's office, Shane and Kris were greeted by a textbook scientist, who looked so stereotypical that only an incredibly stupid person would believe otherwise. As such, as soon as Shane saw him, he asked:

"Who are you, some kind of scientist?"

"Yes, unless it wasn't obvious enough…" the scientist said and shook hands with Kris and Shane; they could feel his hand was sweating and covered with strange-looking goo. "I am Dr. Gideon. I'm sure my father, Kurt, already told you about me. He called me ahead, saying that you have something for me…"

"Oh yeah, I almost forgot!" Shane said, and took the GS Ball from his backpack. "I was sure that this gold- and silver-colored ball was going to be a useless plot device, but I was proved wrong!"

Shane handed the GS Ball to Dr. Gideon, who immediately grabbed the ball from Shane and walked to a strange-looking machine hooked to a computer. He placed the GS Ball on the machine, then started typing something to his computer, looking anxious as he did it. Even Wallace didn't seem to know what was going on:

"I just offered him refuge in my office" Wallace explained. "Old Kurt is a friend of mine, and as soon as his son arrived here, I told that he could wait for you two in my office."

"Oh yes, that Kurt is one silly idealist!" Gideon said while examining the GS Ball. "But you know, he's my father, so I guess I have to love him and such. My, what a wonderfully crafted piece of work this GS Ball is. There's something, oddly fascinating about this… well, anyway, here you go!"

Gideon handed the GS Ball back to the thoroughly confused-looking Shane.

"Wait, I thought I had to deliver this to you?" Shane asked.

"Oh, yes you did, but only so I could make sure that the GS Ball was the real deal. It's a… well, it's kind of a long story, but I'm not going to make you walk all the way back to Azalea Town. I have asked a courier to meet you two in Mahogany Town, where it will be delivered to the… rightful owner."

"Sounds fair" Kris said as Shane placed the GS Ball back into his backpack. "We have to go through Mahogany Town anyway. We'll make sure that the GS Ball gets there!"

"Great!" Wallace exclaimed. "Now, you two can follow me. In fact, I'll offer you a ride back to Olivine City. I saw that dreadful boat you used to get here, so…"

Gideon stayed behind in Wallace's office. After making sure that Wallace, Shane and Kris had left, Gideon quickly took out his cell phone and made a call:

"Hello, boss?" Gideon said. "The stuff is real. Yes, they're coming your way. Yes, we will stay behind. That Wallace guy is leaving back to Hoenn soon so our operations won't be interrupted anymore. Yes, the Pokémon lives here. You can make sure that we're doing our best to catch it for you! All right, talk to you later!"


	15. Individual Adventures

**Chapter Fifteen: **_**Individual Adventures**_

November 9th: "_I haven't written anything to this log in a long time, but that's mainly because I don't want people to think that I'm some sissy writing a diary or something. Anyhow, we got back to Ecruteak from Olivine in record time, but Kris still seems to be afraid that she would lose to Morty again, so she decided to challenge the other gyms first before doing so. During our brief visit in Olivine, Jasmine had returned to her gym. Guide Gent's instructions seem to be paying off, because not only did Kris obtain a Mineral Badge from Jasmine, but I got one as well. My first Johto badge! It was one hell of a battle, though. Jasmine was using this newly found Steel-type, and despite my repeated attempts to tell Golbat to use Poison Fang on her Steelix, it had no effect. How bizarre! Hopefully we don't get to see any more new types. I mean, it would suck if there was some sort of dark-type or some other silly type waiting for us!"_

November 10th: "_Damn, we are making fast progress, biatches! We decided to skip a potentially dangerous, exciting, rewarding and time-consuming trip through Mt. Mortar and just surfed our way through the river. And now, we're in Mahogany Town. I'm telling you, it's nothing like on the brochure!_"

Mahogany Town was described by some as a quiet little mountain town with friendly townspeople. This was, of course, a blatant lie: to Shane and Kris, Mahogany Town was the most depressing town they had seen so far. The entrance to the Pokémon Gym was blocked by some fat guy and the local shop was taken over by another branch of the Nintendu corporation, which sold inferior products with ridiculous prices. The worst thing about the town was that there was no way to head to east, towards Blackthorn City, because the road leading east was blocked by another fat guy. For some reason, the guy kept selling candy bars to people, preventing them from leaving the town. And if you politely refused the offer or if you actually bought one, he would just continue to sell them to you over and over! Seriously, there was something wrong with this game, I mean, world.

Interestingly enough, there was a bus near the road leading out of town, and once again, Shane and Kris confronted Damien Zachowski, stepping on the bus. They tried to hide, but they were too late: Damien had spotted them.

"My, my, if it isn't Thelma and Louise" Damien said, laughing at his own wisecracking. "You finally got here, I see. Of course, when _I _won the Whirl Cup, they offered me a helicopter ride here. Boy, does this place stink. So, I'm leaving this heckhole and I'm going to visit the Ruins of Alph!"

Shane suppressed his urge to murder Damien to ask him a question that intrigued him: "What's that?"

"It's just a tourist attraction" Kris insisted. "There's nothing there worth seeing. I went there on a field trip when I was still at school!"

"Typical ignorance!" Damien scoffed. "I guess your teachers didn't tell you about the mythical Pokémon that have been living there for thousands of years!"

"Wait, wait, wait!" Shane said before Damien could board the bus. "Mythical Pokémon? Thousands of years? At the Ruins of Alph? Seriously, I need to get there as well!"

"Do whatever you want, I don't care!" Damien said and got on the bus.

Shane grabbed his backpack and rushed into the bus. Kris tried to stop him, but Shane didn't even realize that Kris was no longer with him. Before Kris could shout at Shane to come back, the bus driver closed the door and the bus left towards the Ruins of Alph. At the last moment, Kris tried to scream at Shane:

"Don't expect me to take you back!"

Kris was shocked. She offered that weasel company throughout the entire journey, and now, after spending a month together, he just ran away without even saying anything. Sure, Shane was an annoying jerk who should have been killed a few times already, but there was something in him that Kris enjoyed spending time with. And now she was alone.

But there was no need to wallow in self-pity, because Kris had to do something to get to the Mahogany Gym. However, despite her multiple attempts to get in, the fat guy stood in the way and wouldn't let anyone in for no good reason. Kris couldn't help but to wonder what was going on, but she did as suggested by a friendly NPC and headed north to the Lake of Rage, another tourist trap, or so Kris thought.

The hike towards Lake of Rage, was not a pleasant one, because there were multiple trainers there, all challenging Kris with their pathetically underleveled Pokémon, and naturally, Kris beat most of them with her Sudowoodo alone. Finally, as she arrived to the Lake of Rage, she found out that there was something going on: dozens of people had crowded near the lake, along with a camera crew who were filming something supposedly extraordinary. Kris squeezed past the spectators just to see something amazing in the lake: an enormous Gyarados was ferociously trashing about, battling a Dragonite that flew around it, trying to hit it with a Thunderbolt. While the battle between Gyarados and Dragonite itself was already quite thrilling to see, there was something else that intrigued the people: the Gyarados was red. This red Gyarados, which was much larger than usual, was a relatively uncommon sight, considering that Gyarados are always blue. Judging from the dialogue between the spectators, Kris deduced that the appearance of the red Gyarados was deemed to be a hazard, so someone controlling the Dragonite was sent to capture it. Kris took a closer look, and could just barely see a man in a black cape on the Dragonite, battling the Gyarados with great skills, and eventually the Dragonite got close enough to hit the Gyarados with a Body Slam, paralyzing it so Dragonite could deliver the final blow with a Thunderbolt. The Gyarados crashed into the lake, and the trainer finished his battle by throwing a Poké Ball at the Gyarados, successfully capturing it.

But after this great spectacle was over, the people and the camera crew left: after all, now that the battle was over, it wasn't so interesting anymore. But as everyone else left, Kris approached the trainer who descended back to ground and recalled his Dragonite.

"I have to say, that was some spectacular battling!" Kris told the man. "What happened there?"

"I have my doubts about it" the black-caped trainer said. "But I appreciate your concern. What is your name?"

"Me? I'm Kris…" Kris replied, flattered that this person asked her name. "And you… Wait a minute? The Dragonite, the cape… You're Lance, the Pokémon League Champion, aren't you?"

"You have guessed right" Lance said modestly. "But that's hardly the importance right now. I'm actually doing a job, for an organization I'm not naming. I have already blurted it out once and I don't think it had good consequences."

"I-" Kris started, but decided that it would be best not to think about Shane right now. "Yeah, I'm not asking questions. I'll keep my mouth shut!"

"You seem like a reliable person…" Lance said as he glanced Kris. "And I actually need some assistance in something. Mind you, it could be dangerous-"

"Screw dangers, it's not every day when I get to work with the Pokémon League Champion! What's the job?"

"Well, I'm sure you saw that Red Gyarados I captured" Lance said. "I would have preferred letting it to be free, but right now, that Pokémon needs someone to tame it so it won't go on a rampage. It's not the fault of the Pokémon. It was a man-made machine that forced Gyarados to evolve, therefore causing the red color and the erratic behavior. I think I have a good idea on who is behind this. Follow me!"

Without questioning, Kris followed Lance back to Mahogany Town. After getting back, Lance immediately marched into the shady store, and Kris followed suit, despite having no idea on what was going on.

"You, shut up and get out!" Lance told a customer, who immediately fled the store. "And you there!" Lance added to a guy behind a counter, who just about to reach his shotgun. "Don't even think about it, or I'll release Dragonite from its ball and this shop will be blown to matchsticks! You, Kris, grab the shotgun!"

Kris did as told, taking the shotgun away from the shopkeeper, who was holding his hands up.

"Listen, you!" the shopkeeper said while sweating uncontrollably. "You're gonna get caught, you're not getting away with this!"

"Yeah, yeah…"

Lance punched the shopkeeper in the face, knocking him out. Kris was appalled by this brutality, but she also found it quite exciting. Lance marched behind the counter and pressed a button which then triggered a secret entrance to an apparent underground hideout. Kris was completely surprised:

"Whoa! How did you that there was a bad guy hideout here?"

"This place used to be a ninja hideout in the 50's, Koga told me all about it. But enough about that. We're going to get rid of those filthy humans whoever were brutal enough to force the Pokémon to evolve. You can help me, Kris, but you have to decide now. We're entering the lair of Team Rocket, here, after all!"

"Team Rocket?" Kris repeated, until she realized how obvious it was. "Oh yeah, I'm coming, sure as hell! I probably caught some sort of stupidity disease from Shane"

Kris followed Lance, and the two climbed down the stairs, and after some climbing, entered an enormous underground complex, filled with supposed offices, machinery and strange Persian-depicting statues.

"Now, we need to find the machine that Team Rocket is using for this forced evolution!" Lance whispered, while constantly looking around. "You see those Persian-statues? Look carefully, but if you see their eyes, you can see that they're actually hidden cameras. If you pass a statue, they'll know we're here. Fortunately, the ninjas who used to inhabit this place were quite dim, so we should be able to just crawl under the eyes!"

Kris and Lance got on the floor and started crawling, and while Kris didn't like it, she was not going to question Lance. After passing through seemingly endless rows of statues but not seeing a single Rocket Grunt along the way, Lance and Kris finally got up and looked around them.

"Hmm, more stairs…" Lance pondered. "There's one leading up and one leading down… We're going to have to split up. You go down, I'll go up!"

"Wait a minute!" Kris said anxiously. "In bad movies, people always split up just so they can be killed in ridiculously violent ways! Can't we go together?"

"Sorry, but these chapters are getting too long as they are!" Lance reminded, and with that, left Kris and headed to the stairs leading upstairs.

Kris gulped and decided to go down the stairs, sneaking as softly as possible, her eyes constantly shifting back and forth to make sure no Rocket Grunt could see her. But as it happens, Kris got past all the booby traps, including the Persian-statues and exploding Voltorbs, finally making her way to the lowest basement floor, where she encountered an office. After Kris made sure no one else was in the vicinity, she sent Croconaw out of its Poké Ball so that she could have some backup. Together, Kris and Croconaw marched into the office and confronted a slimy, meek-looking man in an expensive suit and with greasy, black hair.

"Who are you?" the man hissed and took one step backwards. "How did you get here?"

"I'll just cut to the chase right now!" Kris said, as threateningly as she could. "I need to know what is causing the Pokémon at the Lake of Rage to go nuts!"

"I don't know anything!" the slimy man said. "I have no idea about the generator in the hidden ground floor, generating power to that ominous machine that sends out radio waves to the lake! I know nothing about it! In fact, forget I even said anything about that. And besides, you can't get into the generator room anyway, since it's locked and you need two passwords to get in!"

"Whoa, that was a lot of information!" Kris said. "I wonder why bad guys always seem so willing to tell about their plans…"

"It wasn't my fault, I was nervous!" the man said. "Please, don't hurt me, and don't tell Phyllis!"

"Who is Phyllis, and who on earth are you?" Kris said, and Croconaw approached the man to intimidate him.

"I told you, I don't know anything!" the man said and backed towards the wall as Croconaw approached him. "All I know is that we're Rocket Executives, my name being Philip and Phyllis being my wife! Oh crap, I blurted it out again! Eh, well, don't tell Phyllis I said that, OK? Just go away, please!"

"What a wimp…" Kris thought. "Well, tell me the passwords and I'll be on my way!"

"Hah haa!" Philip said, forcing himself to laugh. "It doesn't matter, because I only know one password. She knows the other one, and she will never tell, nor will I, even though I told pretty much everything possible to you already!"

"What happened anyway?" Kris asked. "I thought Team Rocket was disbanded three years ago?"

"W-we were…" Philip stuttered while breathing heavily. "It's just… oh, what the hell! I have been dying to tell someone! After our leader, Giovanni disappeared, a handful of the people from his inside circle, the ones not arrested yet, that is, got together. At first, there was me, my wife Phyllis and my friend Nigel, who seems to have mysteriously disappeared… Then, this man… well, not really a man, more of a monster than anything. This monster approached us, offering to unite us and assemble the remaining Rockets and scientists to form a new organization, one he called Neo Team Rocket. We all started hatching new plans, but mine wasn't good enough. Apparently, urinating in the drinking water isn't 'sophisticated' enough. Instead, Phyllis forced me to work on her strange project. This scientist guy who also joined us, apparently an old friend of Giovanni's, started to run things, and-"

"Settle down, I didn't ask for your life story!" Kris insisted, after getting sick of this exposition. "Who is that 'monster' guy who assembled you? Nah, I don't really care about that. Just give me the password!"

"I… never!"

"Krow! Murkrow! Raticate Tail!"

This noise was made by a Murkrow sitting on a table nearby. Judging by Philip's horrified expression, Raticate Tail was apparently the other password needed, as it was uttered by this parrot-like Murkrow.

"Stupid bird!" Philip shouted. "I knew I shouldn't have agreed when Phyllis asked me to take care of it! Hey, where are you going?"

Now that Kris was in possession of the other password, she stormed away from Philip's office and started to look for the generator room. She had no idea how to obtain the other password, but that was not important. As Kris looked for the room, she bumped into Lance, who seemed to have similar intentions.

"Lance!" Kris uttered before Lance could say a word. "I know what we need to do. We-"

"Yes, I already faced one Rocket Grunt already!" Lance interrupted. "He seems to be the only grunt left in the building. He told me about this generator room that powers up the transmitting device that is making the Pokémon insane. He also gave me the other password for the room: Slowpoketail! I managed to obtain it after I 'discussed' with him a bit."

"That's great, because I got the other one! Raticate Tail!"

"Good, come with me. During my rummaging, I found a door which was, conveniently enough, labeled 'generator room'."

"Excellent!"

Kris enjoyed working with this Lance fellow: he was strictly business and got things done. Strangely enough, though, Lance never seemed to smile, not even a bit. Together, Kris and Lance rushed into the generator room and entered their respective passwords to enter a very, very tall room filled by an enormous generator. Most noticeably, there were several Electrodes, the evolved form of Voltorb, hooked into the machinery, apparently powering up the generator.

"I see…" Lance said as he looked around. "Somehow, Team Rocket is using radio frequencies to interfere with the minds of the Pokémon. If we disable this generator, things should return to normal, at least in here!"

"Do we have to make all the Electrode faint?" Kris asked with a mix of sorrow and disgust in her voice.

"Oh no, I have no time for that. I think this'll do the trick!"

Simply enough, Lance marched up to each Electrode, despite knowing that they could explode on his face, and detached them from the machinery, one by one. After the last one was detached, the generator simply stopped humming, and finally, the machine was shut down.

"Whew…" Kris said. "That was remarkably easy…"

As the Electrode, now free from Team Rocket's captivity, rolled away happily, Kris and Lance decided to get out from the hideout, but couldn't help but to wonder where all the Rocket Grunts were hiding. Just as Lance and Kris were approaching the exit, they were apprehended: the exit was blocked by Philip, as well as a bossy, red-haired woman in a fancy, expensive-looking jacket suit. This was apparently Phyllis, Philip's ball-busting wife.

"Hold it!" Phyllis said and stopped Kris and Lance on their trail. "We're not going to allow you to just march out of here. Come on, Philip, pull yourself together! We're going to have a little battle!"

"You're going to regret that!" Lance said. "But have it your way, then. Dragonite, go!"

"Go, Gloom!" Phyllis said.

"Raticate, go!" Philip said.

Phyllis and Philip sent out their Pokémon. Seeing as this was going to be a double battle, Kris sent out her own Croconaw to help Lance's Dragonite. Phyllis and Philip, without much regard for rules, ordered their Pokémon to gang up on Dragonite, both attacking with Acid and Hyper Fang. But the enormous Dragonite was merely slightly affected by these attacks, and Lance retorted by telling Dragonite to use Hyper Beam, which immediately wreaked havoc in the hideout, blasting a hole to the wall and knocking out both Gloom and Raticate as well as their trainers before Kris could do anything.

"Come on, Kris!"

Instead of wasting time, Lance hopped on Dragonite's back, with Kris and Croconaw following suit. Dragonite then flew out of the hideout, bursting through the hole on the wall and then blasting its way out of the now-abandoned store, leaving an enormous hole on the roof instead. Dragonite then landed directly in front of the Mahogany Gym, which was now open, surprisingly enough.

"Thanks for the help, Kris!" Lance said.

"Help? I barely did anything! How come we didn't stay back and fight those two executives?"

"They were obviously just trying to stall us" Lance explained. "Save for them and one lousy Rocket Grunt, there was nobody there. I fear that they have evacuated their hideout and sent all their grunts somewhere else. We may have stopped the forced evolution at the Lake of Rage, but I have a feeling that they might resurface somewhere…"

"Sure, you have a _feeling_" Kris deadpanned, but immediately shut her mouth upon realizing who she was talking to.

"Anyway, I have to go." Lance said. "But I'm telling you, watch your step. Team Rocket are planning something!"

Lance hopped on his Dragonite again, and before Kris could even say goodbye, Dragonite jumped up and rocketed into the sky, eventually being too far to see. There was so much Kris wanted to ask the Pokémon League Champion, but decided to forget about it and head to the Mahogany Gym - she was feeling mighty confident.

**...**

November 11th: "_After arriving to the Ruins of Alph, me and Damien joined this group of researches who wanted to go through the ruins with a fine-toothed comb, searching it from top to bottom. The lead scientist told us to group into pairs, but it seems that no one wanted to pair up with me or Damien. I understand that no one wants to spend time with that arrogant schmuck Damien, but I don't understand why no one wanted to be with me? Me, the most lovable guy in the universe!"_

During Kris' scuffle with Team Rocket, Shane and Damien were blissfully unaware of this, as they had their hands full with going through the various caves and dungeons of the Ruins of Alph. Seeing as Shane and Damien were both considered unbearable, they had to work together, but constantly bickered like a married couple. After browsing through the ground with a toothbrush, Shane and Damien decided to inspect one cave that was partially hidden by the foliage.

"Should we look at that as well?" Shane asked.

"I'm already sick of this! This was a mistake! There's nothing worth looking here!" Damien complained. "Seriously, I haven't found anything that would make rich and/or famous!"

"Come on, maybe that cave has something valuable. Rest assured, Damien, I don't want to work with you either, but I have no choice, so come on!"

Shane and the disgruntled Damien entered the small cave, which was otherwise empty, except for a stone platform in the middle of the cave, which had some sort of a slide jigsaw puzzle on it, with the pieces made out of stone.

"Hmm, I suppose this puzzle isn't here just for looks…" Shane said. "Maybe something interesting will happen if I complete the puzzle. I'll just-"

"Stand back, lowbrow!" Damien said and pushed Shane away. "I, after all, have completed various puzzles throughout my life, most involving boulders, buttons, trapdoors and water currents. This shouldn't take long!"

Shane sighed, but allowed Damien to complete the puzzle anyway.

"Ah, I've seen this one…" Damien said. "This puzzle is supposed to represent a Kabuto, a Pokémon that is already extinct, as I should know since I am so knowlegable."

"You mean 'knowledgeable'?"

"Yeah, whatever…" Damien said as he slid the pieces of the puzzle together. "Just put this here and this here and… there! I'm done!"

Shane and Damien looked around expectantly, but nothing seemed to happen.

"Let me see that!" Shane said and pushed Damien away in turn. "Oh, I see, you made a little mistake here. This piece needs to be here, and… this one needs to be… here!"

Not even a second could pass after Shane completed the puzzle, when the floor below Damien started cracking, and before he could move or even scream, the floor under him disappeared and Damien started falling towards a bottomless abyss. Shane, despite knowing fully that Damien was his rival and all in all, a jerkass, threw himself on the floor and grabbed Damien's hand just before he was about to fall to his death.

"Shane, help!" Damien wailed as he looked down. "I'm too handsome to die!"

"Goddamnit, Damien, you're too heavy!" Shane said as he struggled to pull Damien up. "How much do you weigh?"

"I'm not going to answer that!" Damien yelled and struggled to drag himself up. "If you don't have the energy to pull me up, then at least throw yourself down there so I can fall on your body!"

"Hell no!" Shane said and pulled Damien as hard as he could, but he was just too puny to drag Damien up a moment, both Shane and Damien seemed to struggle in vein, but eventually, Shane managed to drag Damien back up again. As soon as Damien got up, he collapsed on the floor and panted, Shane being out of breath as well.

"Shane… you saved my life…" Damien panted.

"Yeah, I guess I did…" Shane said after realizing what he did. "So, I guess you can't give me a hard time anymore?"

"No, I'm still going to give you a hard time!" Damien said and pulled himself up. "But, uh… thanks, I guess."

"Don't mention it" Shane said, and added: "Seriously, don't. I kinda wish that I would have let you fall to your death!"

Damien laughed, albeit unnaturally, not knowing whether or not Shane was joking. Truth to be told, Shane didn't even know it himself. As Shane pulled himself up as well and both left the cave carefully to avoid falling again. Nevertheless, as Damien and Shane continued to find strange things, Damien was more friendly towards Shane than before, if only a little.

"So, what's the deal with you and that chick you were traveling with?" Damien asked.

"You mean Kris? I don't know… I like her and all, but I don't she likes me back…"

"So you _do _like her? I mean not just as a friend?" Damien asked, and Shane nodded.

"But, you know, she doesn't seem to be that interested in me" Shane said nonchalantly. "In fact, I haven't seen her express any kind of interest in anything besides her Pokémon training…"

"Hang on a second!" Damien said, now sounding slightly angry. "You like that girl, and yet you just left her standing in Mahogany Town, without even saying goodbye, just so you could walk around at some god-forsaken ruins with me? I mean, I know I'm handsome and all, but sheesh!"

"Yeah, but I… I mean, I… But, you see… wait" Shane mumbled, and suddenly he realized it. "Wait, am I the dumbest person on the planet?"

"Do you really need an answer to that question?" Damien asked.

"I… I gotta go! Uh, see you later, Damien, write me if you find anything!"

Once again, Shane ran away from the Ruins of Alph, desperate to reach Kris before he would lose her for good. Damien shrugged and walked in the other direction, wondering if the Ruins of Alph Café was still open. And all this time, both of them were completely unaware that they were watched by little, black, alphabet-shaped Pokémon, floating around the ruins…

**...**

Back in Mahogany Town, Kris had successfully completed the annoying ice puzzle and confronted and defeated the gym leader, Pryce, with relative ease. Old Pryce was quite different than any other leader Kris had faced before: while all other leaders had been somewhat laid-back or had a humorous personality trait, Pryce was extremely serious, cold, distant and even borderline rude. Pryce's main Pokémon was Piloswine, which Kris nevertheless defeated with the help from her Sudowoodo, who could withstand Piloswine's attacks thanks to its defensive capabilities. Kris was quite excited: this was her sixth badge already.

"Congratulations, challenger" Pryce said monotonously, obviously bored with his life. "Excuse me, but the Glacier Badges are being held in a safe in the basement, so I'll go fetch one. Wait here, please"

Kris nodded, as she was quite happy to leave the gym, which was not only cold, but Pryce's behavior was scary and awkward in itself. Pryce walked into the basement through a hidden door, but instead of the basement, there was something else under the gym: a very long underground tunnel leading to a cabin at the outskirts of Mahogany Town. Pryce walked towards the end of the tunnel as fast as he could, his appearance of a frail old man being an apparent ruse, as he could move quite quickly, without the cane he constantly used when seen in public.

After arriving to the end of the tunnel, he walked up the stairs and resurfaced in the hidden cabin, where he kept something else than the Glacier Badge: his most prized possession, a large, light blue voodoo mask, representing the element of ice. Pryce grabbed the mask and placed it on his face. He immediately transformed into something completely different: his entire body was wrapped in ice and his voice was changed to low, gurgling, monstrous sound that he could use to intimidate his victims: he had turned into the Mask of Ice, also known as the Masked Man. To amplify his intimidation, the Mask of Ice grabbed a black cape that he used to conceal his body, to make sure no one could tell who he was.

In a small room in the cabin, Dr. Gideon was kneeling on the floor, waiting for his master to arrive. He had waited for a seemingly endless amount of time, but finally, his master, the Mask of Ice arrived.

"I hope you are bringing good news for me this time!" the Mask of Ice reprimanded Dr. Gideon in a vaguely Darth Vader-esque voice. "I hear that the generator was disabled!"

"Oh yes, master, but surely you have noticed already that our test was a resounding success, all thanks to you, oh Mask of Ice" Dr. Gideon said as slimily as he could. "We are ready for the second phase, so-"

"Do what you want, I don't care about that!" the Mask said. "I only care about the GS Ball. Where is it?"

"Ah, that…" Gideon said warily. "Well, I told those two to deliver it to Mahogany Town, you see, there's a warrant for my arrest in effect, so I couldn't leave the Whirl Islands until now. I'm sure they will be in town any second now, I sent you the picture from the surveillance camera, remember?"

"Well, I happen to know that the girl is about to leave the Mahogany Gym soon!"

"How do you know that?"

"I just do. I'm an immensely powerful villain who can freeze people by touching them and I'm pretty sure I can manipulate the Force soon anyway, so I just know these things, OK?"

"Yes, master! What do you want me to do?"

"Take some Rocket Grunts with you" the Mask said. "And take the GS Ball from her by force. I don't care how, just do it!"

"Yes, master!"

After the Mask of Ice made sure that Gideon had left, he detached the mask to turn into Pryce again. After making sure that no one would find this unfeasible plot device, Pryce returned to the gym as slowly as possible to hand the Glacier Badge over to Kris. Despite being forced to wait for a long time, Kris was happy to receive the badge.

But as soon as Kris left the gym, three goons approached her from behind and knocked her out with a nightstick. As she collapsed on the ground and was only semi-conscious, she could hear the goons going through her backpack and searching her pockets.

"Sir, we can't find the ball! She doesn't have it!" said one of the voices.

"Blast it!" said another, vaguely familiar voice. "So that guy must have it, then. The boss will freak out, but I'll explain the sitch to him. Let's get out of here! Go!"

With her blurred vision, Kris could see the goons leaving, followed by their leader, a man in a lab coat. Then, Kris lost consciousness.


	16. Radio Ga Ga

**Chapter Sixteen: **_**Radio Ga Ga**_

After being unconscious for a few minutes, Kris was awakened when her cell phone rang repeatedly. Her headache was too much for her to respond. After finally getting back to her feet, she saw that it was Professor Elm who tried to contact her. After calling him back, Elm ranted something about his new discoveries and ended the call with stating that there was something wrong with the radio stations: all of them seemed to talk something about Team Rocket…

Kris was unwilling to see what was going on, but since she wanted to know why she was knocked out and left in the middle of town with her backpack being inspected, she decided to go to Goldenrod City to find out what was wrong with the radio.

As soon as she arrived to the city by bus, she realized what was going on: the usually crowded main street of Goldenrod City was completely deserted, and the doors of several houses were blocked by goons in black uniforms - Team Rocket. Apparently, they had completely taken over Goldenrod City, just like they did in Saffron City three years ago - or so Kris had heard. But their motif for this was unclear. All Kris knew that it was rather unhealthy to be in Goldenrod City right now. Fortunately, there was one place that was safe to be in: the Underground Pathway. Right now, the company of sleaze balls, criminals, evil super nerds and even, God forbid, otakus, felt safer than the company of Team Rocket. Kris just hoped that she could avoid as much otakus as possible.

Surprisingly, the Underground Pathway was now crowded. Dozens of people had fled there during the takeover to avoid oppression from the Rocket Grunts. The more unlucky ones were either beaten to a pulp by the Rockets or were forced to stay inside their homes or places of businesses. Among those people in the Underground were, to Kris' surprise, Silver. Now that there was nowhere for Silver to run, Kris decided to confront him once and for all.:

"Hey! Silver! Don't even think of going anywhere!"

Kris ran to Silver, who was simply leaning to a wall, a bit further away from all the people. Silver merely turned away when he saw Kris approaching him.

"You again?" he asked. "What happened to that dungbag you were with?"

"That doesn't matter right now. What are you doing here?"

"You may not believe this, but I don't care…" Silver said and, for the first time, looked Kris in the eyes. "I was in Mahogany Town a few days ago, and this guy in a black cape and I had a battle. I was… well, he was just too strong for me. That guy had dragon-type Pokémon, for crying out loud. So, he told me all this… stuff, and I've been starting to reconsider my… methods. But I'm not going soft, I'm telling you that!"

Kris smiled. For the first time, she thought that this guy wasn't so bad. Maybe just misled, or maybe it was all just an act so he wouldn't have to be bothered by other people. In a way, Kris was envious: Silver was a man who really could 'do his own thing', in the precise meaning of the phrase.

"So, if there's going to be a redemption, then I'll make one by kicking the bleep out of Team Rocket! And why's that? Because I hate Team Rocket!" Silver ranted. "They act all tough in a group, but when they're alone, they are weak, pathetic losers. Just like certain people I know…"

"So what are you going to do? Defeat Team Rocket and destroy their regime?" Kris asked sarcastically.

"Oh, yes I am!" Silver insisted. "You see, I know where they're holed. The reason why they wanted to take over Goldenrod is the Radio Tower. I don't know what they want about the Radio Tower, but maybe this will explain something…"

Silver took his (_totally radical!) _PokéGear (_buy now!!!_)from his pocket (_product placement owns!!!_) and tuned on to the radio. For a moment, Kris and Silver couldn't hear anything, then, the ominous and surprisingly catchy Team Rocket theme started playing in the radio. The theme was then accompanied by a message from the Team Rocket executive, Phyllis:

"Hello? Are we on? We did it! Team Rocket has taken over the Radio Tower! Giovanni! Our leader! Can you hear us, Giovanni? We did it! Bow down to Team Rocket! This message will be broadcasted ad nauseam until Giovanni responds to us… Hello? Are we on? We d-"

Silver closed the PokéGear radio to silence this voice, and Kris seemed to understand what was going on, but neither of them was closer to finding out how to stop Team Rocket.

"Well, I'll help you, then!" Kris said. "And before you say anything against it," Kris added as Silver was opening his mouth. "I'm doing it for my _own_ reasons, not because I want to help you! But I think it's best we work together to achieve our _own_ goals. OK?"

"Fine by me" Silver said. "But only because you wouldn't know how to do anything without me. In case you didn't know, the entrance to the Radio Tower is blocked. However, before the new and modern Radio Tower was built, some of the ruins of the old, creaky one still remained. So, I think we can access the ruins of the old one through a maintenance tunnel here, and from the ruins, we can enter the actual radio tower through a ventilation shaft. Are you following me?"

"I think so, after all, I'm smarter than the guy I hung out with" Kris remarked, and followed Silver to the maintenance tunnel.

Kris and Silver, without even bothering to help each other along the way, nevertheless crossed through the maintenance tunnel and climbed upwards. Eventually they came across a door, which led, unsurprisingly enough, to the ruins of the old radio tower. After going in through the dilapidated door, Silver then found the appropriate ventilation shaft. Kris blindly followed Silver, as she had the feeling that Silver knew what he was doing. Finally, after crawling through a long, long shaft, Kris and Silver got out through a hatch, and found themselves in the janitor's closet of the Radio Tower. After exiting the closet, they realized that they were in the third floor, and saw two sets of stairs, both leading upstairs, but apparently to different rooms.

"I'm getting a déjà vu here…" Kris said. "Silver, you take the left stairs and I'll go through the right ones."

"Alright then, but call for me if you find the executives!" Silver whispered.

Kris and Silver both headed towards their own directions. Kris climbed up the stairs as quietly as she could. While the hideout in Mahogany Town was quite deserted, the Radio Tower was full of Rocket Grunts and scientists working for Team Rocket, all broadcasting the infamous message in an infinite loop. Kris climbed through the stairs all the way to the highest floor, where there was only one room: the Director's office.

As Kris entered the office, she didn't see any Rockets, but saw an old man in a suit, his face obscured by his hat, laying on the floor, with his arms and legs tied together and his mouth gagged. This couldn't be anyone else than the Director, Kris thought, so she decided to set the Director free. Before that, however, Kris released Croconaw from its Poké Ball, just in case.

"Hang on a moment, sir" Kris said while trying to get off the ropes, which weren't as tight as she thought. "You'll be free in no time, and then you can tell me what the hell happened here."

As Kris was focused on getting the Director free, Croconaw looked around, and was suddenly shocked to see a bipedal, yellow-skinned Pokémon with cat-like ears, a large nose and a white collar. The Pokémon swung its pendulum around before Croconaw could call out for Kris, slowly hypnotizing it, lulling it to sleep.

"Whew, thank you" the Director said, his voice sounding surprisingly rough. "I thought I was going to be… Hypno! Psybeam!"

Kris looked behind her, just in time to dodge when the yellow-skinned Pokémon that hypnotized Croconaw launched a beam towards Kris, instead hitting the Director's desk, blowing it up. Before Hypno could attack again, Kris, realizing that Croconaw was useless now, called out Misdreavus, telling it to use Shadow Ball. Her Misdreavus hurled a ghostly blob towards Hypno, knocking it out with one shot.

"Why the hell did you do that for?" Kris yelled and grabbed the Director's hat from him - only to find that he was wearing a false beard.

The Director turned out to be a familiar face: Miguel, the freelance criminal working with Team Rocket.

"Oh, hell no, I knew this would be too easy" Kris lamented. "Why are you doing this?"

"Have I been unclear before, _puta_?" Miguel asked. "I'm a freaking freelance criminal, and I have no other employers besides Team Rocket. I had to fire José and Pepe, and I still find it hard to make ends meet!"

"Where did you stash the real Director?"

"I'm not telling you that… unless, you know, the prize is right…"

Kris sighed, but there was no time to argue, so she handed Miguel one thousand whatevers. Miguel was quite happy to receive this much money, and crammed them into his pocket.

"Thanks, those Rocket bastardos are real dicks about paying overtime" Miguel said. "Here, take this…"

Miguel reached to his pocket and took out a small key which he handed to Kris.

"Those damn Rockets promised to pay me to masquerade the Director in order to fool people who could potentially march in and ruin their plan" Miguel explained. "We stashed the real Director to a warehouse in the Underground Pathway. I still haven't seen the money, so I'm giving you the key to the warehouse. After all, I work for the highest bidder!"

"Thanks, Miguel!" Kris said. "Now get the hell out of here!"

Miguel recalled his unconscious Hypno and did as ordered, and Kris waited for a moment so that her Croconaw could recover from the Hypnosis. Then, she left the Radio Tower through the same route as she used to get in, but all the time wondering on where did Silver go. He was nowhere to be seen, and Kris had a sneaking suspicion that he was captured by Team Rocket. Unfortunately, she couldn't do anything about it, as she would just be captured herself. After getting out of the tower and back to the Underground Pathway, she started looking for the door leading to the warehouse.

Fortunately, the right door was found quite easily: after all, it was labeled 'NO ENTRY BEYOND THIS POINT', which almost screamed 'There is something interesting here!'. Kris used the key to get in, but getting to the Director's stash was harder, since the place was also full of not only Rockets, but burglars and other slimeballs trying to steal stuff. Kris had to fight her way through, once again using all the Pokémon in her disposal to take out as many grunts as possible. After walking through series of endless tunnels and figuring out numerous puzzles, Kris found herself in the basement of the Goldenrod Department Store, where, coincidentally enough, the Director was stored. Kris rescued her by knocking out the grunt guarding him, and the Director gave Kris a key which she could use to get to the fifth floor studio of the Radio Tower, where the executives were hiding.

So, Kris back-tracked to the Radio Tower, and to put an end to the Rocket invasion, opened the shutters using the card key, and ran towards the fifth floor. However, her path was already blocked in the fourth floor, where he was Silver being held at gunpoint by - the creepy scientist guy from the Whirl Cup: Dr. Gideon.

"Damn it, I should have known" Kris said and laughed a little. "It was so obvious that you were a villain! I guess it was you who knocked me out and lost a potential chance to grope me at Mahogany Town?"

"Not important right now" Gideon said. "I was just running an errand for the boss. _This_ is what my plan is all about. Phyllis may be more interested in reaching out for Giovanni, but I have much more ambitious plans. This Radio Tower is the perfect opportunity to use my machine. It will broadcast radio waves all over the world, causing every Pokémon it comes contact with to go completely mad and be under control."

"Right… you're crazy."

"Or…" Gideon said as he waved his gun carelessly around. "Maybe _you're_ crazy and _I'm_ sane, huh? Besides, that doesn't matter, because - _ow, son of a bitch!_"

As Gideon was being too careless with his gun, Silver smacked the gun out from his hand. Before Gideon could do anything, Silver grabbed the gun, and instead of using it against Gideon, he threw it away.

"Kris, you go upstairs. Those executives are there. I'll handle this guy!" Silver said.

Instead of throwing the usual, 'are you sure?'-speech, Kris willingly accepted this offer and rushed upstairs. Gideon seemed to feel helpless when forced to fight fair, but nevertheless prepared himself to a Pokémon battle.

"Porygon, go!" he said.

"Meganium, go!"

Gideon used his Porygon, a man-made Pokémon resembling a wooden duck, while Silver used his Meganium; apparently, his Chikorita had already evolved to the highest stage. Kris didn't stay behind to watch the battle, but crashed through the door of the fifth floor studio, where Phyllis and Philip seemed to be only mildly surprised to see her.

"Ah, I was wondering when you would arrive to save that guy" Phyllis said. "Don't ask me how, I just knew you were coming. So, it has come down the this. The possibility to end this with a fair, one-on-one Pokémon battle, you against me. But let's face it: I have worked for Team Rocket long enough to realize that standard plot guidelines would force me to lose anyway. I'm trying to get a hold of our long lost boss, Giovanni, our mentor and our God. If that plan fails, then… well, I'm screwed. So…"

Without even bothering to take out a Poké Ball, Phyllis grabbed a pistol from her holster and aimed at Kris.

"Instead, I'm just going to shoot you!" Phyllis giggled. "Isn't it great? It's no wonder that we got our asses kicked by that punk kid three years ago. We didn't have guns back then! Goodbye!"

Kris tried to think as fast as she could, but there was no way out of the situation. Phyllis was aiming a gun at her, and Philip watched on as Phyllis was just about to pull the trigger, when-

"Drop the gun!"

Kris turned around: two policemen and a detective were all aiming their guns towards Phyllis, who cursed her bad luck, but nevertheless was forced to raise her hands, and Philip surrendered willingly as well. The detective, a badass-looking, tall, short-haired man in a trench coat approached Phyllis and Philip to place them under arrest.

"Wow, thanks!" Kris said, surprised by this sudden rescue. "How did you know what was happening?"

"I'm Looker, an agent of International Police!" the detective said. "I was able to recruit some police officers to come assist the Goldenrod Police, which is only comprised of two people. It's no wonder Team Rocket could take this city over so easily. In fact, I wouldn't even know about this, but you know, the Rockets made one fatal error in broadcasting their plans over the radio and forgetting to take any hostages."

"Thank you so much for rescuing us!" the real Director said. "I must offer you some kind of reward!"

"No, thanks, I didn't do it to get a reward!" Kris said. "Hey, where's Silver?"

"Silver? Who's that?"

"The guy downstairs… battling Dr. Gideon…"

"There's no one downstairs, we just found that scientist guy, Dr. Gideon, I guess, unconscious on the floor next to his Porygon" Looker said as Phyllis and Philip were taken away. "By the way, I wouldn't feel too happy about your temporary victory if I were you. Our prisons aren't too good, and the walls are practically made of cardboard, so these guys will probably escape and come after you!"

"They don't scare me!" Kris said. She was more concerned on the sudden disappearance of Silver.

The police merely thanked Kris for the assistance and proceeded to take all the credit for taking down Team Rocket. The Radio Tower Director, however, refused to let Kris go without a reward. So, since Kris refused to accept money or anything like that, she was handed a white, crystal bell.

"What's this? Really, I would have preferred no reward. This is quite heavy…"

"It's called the Clear Bell" the Director explained. "It's a very ancient artifact that makes the most beautiful chime. They found it during the construction of this Radio Tower, but I don't really have use for it."

"What makes you think I do?" Kris asked, but accepted the bell anyway, placing it into her backpack.

With everything back to normal now, Kris and the Director walked to the window and watched as numerous Rocket Grunts were being dragged into police cars, and Phyllis, Philip and Gideon were all crammed into one car. Kris smiled as she saw all three of them engaged in a heated argument. She was feeling good, even though she didn't get any reward and no one would believe what she did. The credit would bring unnecessary fame and burden to her anyway, so it's best that only Kris knew what really had happened. Despite the hateful and rude behavior of Silver, Kris couldn't help to wonder what had happened to him and why did Silver felt so much hatred towards Team Rocket. Nevertheless, she would head to Ecruteak City next. She was finally ready to face Morty, and by this point, she didn't care whether or not she could beat him. There was only one way to find out.


	17. Oh, Crystal Bells!

**Chapter Seventeen: **_**Oh, Crystal Bells!**_

November 13th: "_Hello again, my dearest diary, I mean, log. Captain's log. I am about to boldly go where no man has gone before. And by that, I mean I'm going to actually find Kris and apologize and hope that through some miraculous turn of events, she will forgive me and we can be friends again. I hope. For these past three days, I've been walking stupidly towards Ecruteak City, hoping that I can find Kris there. If not, I guess I could take some janitor's job and live sadly ever after in that city and die alone or something. Well, I'm sure that won't happen!_"

Shane found out that navigating in Johto was harder without Kris to help him, but somehow he stumbled his way to Ecruteak City. Without money, however, so Shane was obviously hungry as hell. He could only think of two ways to get money, one being too smutty to be told in a T-rated story and the other being working. Since both were equally unpleasant ideas, Shane decided to just go to the local pub and see if someone could offer him a meal. Or two.

It was about lunchtime, so the pub was moderately crowded. Several people were seen eating and reading newspapers, and Shane hung around the entrance, looking as pathetic and starved as possible - which wasn't difficult. As he looked around the pub, he was shocked to see rather familiar black-haired girl reading the paper and eating a meal, and most importantly, alone. Shane snuck towards the table and quietly sat down to surprise Kris:

"Hi, Kris! Long time, hammertime!"

But she just continued eating and reading the paper, acting like Shane was just thin air.

"Uh, listen, are you going to finish that?"

Kris still refused to respond. But to Shane, silence meant 'yes', so Shane reached out to grab a piece of bread from Kris - which was the exact moment when Kris jabbed her fork directly into Shane's hand.

"Motherf-"

"That's for abandoning me, you dweeb!" Kris said, and Shane tried his best to avoid screaming in agony. "_Now_ you can have some food. I'll buy you something. Something cheap, I mean!"

Shane was surprised by this sudden mood whiplash, and after he had made enough amusing facial expressions, Kris pulled the fork away. Shane panted and wiped his face on Kris' napkin. Kris called a waiter to her table, and a few minutes later, a plate of charred meatballs and poorly-cooked mashed potatoes arrived in front of Shane, but Shane was too hungry to care, and immediately started eating.

"That was… quite brutal" Shane said whilst trying to swallow down the meatballs.

"Yeah, well, life is brutal. Get used to it!" Kris said, and smiled a bit. "So you're done playing with your boyfriend?"

"Yeah…" Shane replied, too tired to think of a comeback. "Mind you, we didn't find anything interesting at the ruins. But hey, listen to this. I actually saved his life! So I don't think he'll bother us again!"

"I sure hope so…" Kris said. "After you have crammed that food down, we're going to the Ecruteak Gym to pay Morty a visit."

Shane was so hungry that his food soon disappeared, and after Kris had paid the bill, the duo left the bar and started walking towards the gym, without talking about anything along the way. But, alas, it looked like Kris' battle with Morty would going to be postponed again: the front door was blocked by a small group of people. The Legendary Society was up to something, it seemed, as Shane and Kris noticed familiar faces chatting with Morty: Eusine, and the three members of the Wise Trio. As Kris and Shane approached the group, Morty seemed to be positively surprised.

"Hello again, Shane and Kris" Morty said. "Unfortunately, I can't have a rematch with you just yet, Kris. There's something going on in the Tin Tower. This is technically classified, but since we haven't really been careful with that before either, you can come with us."

Shane and Kris followed the group towards the Tin Tower, the nine-tier tower of Ecruteak City, which was where Ho-Oh supposedly made its roost, or at least, where it used to make. This magnificent tower resembled Buddhist temples quite heavily, with fitting architecture and decorations. A large bell was seen hanging from the ceiling of the ground floor, and its purpose was explained by one of the monks, although both Shane and Kris had already forgotten their names.

"While the aurora Pokémon Suicune once slept in the Brass Tower, it feels a very strong connection to this tower, and has appeared here frequently. As such, we have installed this bell. Whenever Suicune appears, the bell will ring" the monk told.

"Care to explain our young guests the purpose of the four crystals bells at the top of the tower?" Morty asked.

"Indeed I will, brother Morty" said the monk. "There are four even larger crystal bells on top of the tower. While it hasn't occurred in decades, the bells will nevertheless ring if Ho-Oh would appear on top of the tower."

"Hang on a second…" Kris said and dug the Clear Bell from her backpack. "Does this bell have any relation to these ones? I mean, it looks quite similar…"

"The magnificent Clear Bell!" said another monk, and all the monks gathered around Kris. "The chime of the bell is said to purify the heart of its listener. It has been missing for decades! It is said to produce the most wonderful sound imaginable!"

"It won't hurt to try!" Shane said. "Come on, ring the bell!"

Kris shrugged, and rang the Clear Bell. For a moment, it made a soft, heavenly sound that entranced everyone in the vicinity. But after a few seconds, this sound was replaced by extremely loud ringing, sounding vaguely like church bells, causing everyone to flinch and look around.

"For a bell as small as that, it sure made a loud noise…"

"No!" Morty yelled. "It was the crystal bells, I think. What the hell happened?"

"Maybe… Ho-Oh?" Eusine suggested.

Shane, Kris, Eusine and Morty were briefly quiet, and then, before the Wise Trio could stop them, they barged towards the stairs and climbed higher and higher, running as fast as they could so they could even catch a glimpse of the magnificent phoenix. Despite being horribly out of breath, they didn't stop before reaching the very top of the tower - only to find that there was nothing there. The crystal bells were gently swinging, having already stopped ringing.

"Where did it go?" Eusine raged. "Did I miss it again? Just my luck!"

"Hang on…"

Shane, being probably the most insistent on seeing Ho-Oh, saw something sparkling on the floor. Shane crouched and picked up a large, golden feather. Shane raised it higher, and in the sunlight, it seemed to shine in all the colors of the rainbow.

"Is this from Ho-Oh?"

"Let me see that!"

Eusine tried to grab the feather from Shane, but Shane knew better not to give it to him. Instead, Eusine was forced to watch from a distance. Morty took a closer look as well, and Shane trusted him more.

"Well, it's hard to say, because, honestly, I have never even seen Ho-Oh at close" Morty said. "But I was here just yesterday, and there was nothing here then. I doubt this is some kind of heinous prank, and it doesn't seem to be a feather of anything else."

Shane grinned and placed the feather in his pocket. Morty didn't seem to object, but Eusine looked very displeased.

"But why did Ho-Oh come here in the first place if it was just going to fly away?" Kris wondered.

Everyone delved into their thoughts again, and even Morty couldn't coin an apt response. As they tried to figure it out, the group heard another sound: another bell was ringing, the one on the ground floor. Suicune had arrived. Again, Shane, Kris, Eusine and Morty rushed downstairs, as fast as they could.

Upon arriving, they were pleasantly surprised: Suicune was still there. The Wise Trio stood in awe as they adored the grace of the aurora Pokémon. Suicune itself simply stood near the door of the Tin Tower, staring at the group. No one knew why it had arrived, but it seemed to be there for a purpose. As Kris watched it closely, it almost seemed that it was signaling the group to follow it. Just as Kris was about to suggest this possibility, Eusine stepped forth and grabbed a Poké Ball from his belt.

"Finally… I can finally see this magnificent beast in flesh…" Eusine said. "I knew I was important, and if this doesn't prove it, I don't know what does. Suicune, say hello to your new master. Alakazam, go!"

Eusine sent out his prized Pokémon: Alakazam, the powerful Psychic Pokémon. Eusine knew that Suicune was powerful, but he had a plan:

"Alakazam, use Disable!"

Eusine's Alakazam prepared to attack, and launched its psychic attack towards Suicune, but by simply using Protect, Suicune shielded itself from the attack, then emitted a powerful Roar that seemed to intimidate Alakazam so much that it willingly returned into its Poké Ball.

"Hey! Come out of there! Come out, you coward. Fine, then I'll just have to go with-"

But Suicune was fed up - it wasn't going to allow itself to be captured, and since no one seemed to understand its intentions, it ran at incredible speed, once again leaving Eusine empty-handed.

"Guys…" Kris said. "I don't know if this was a good time to say this… but did it feel that Suicune was about to, you know, tell us something?"

"Well, thanks a lot, dingus!" Morty reprimanded Eusine, this being the first time he actually sounded angry. "We could have solved the prior murder mystery already, but then you had to screw it up. What were you thinking? You can't just go around, trying to capture Suicune!"

Eusine didn't respond. He wasn't even listening, as he was just staring towards a distance, as if wishing that Suicune would come back again.

"I believe brother Morty is right. Legendary Pokémon are simply far too powerful for us."

This line wasn't uttered by any of the Wise Trio monks. The group turned to see a familiar-looking old man with thick glasses and a long beard, wearing a black robe.

"Kris, check it out! It's the old man from chapter thirteen! Guide Gent, or whoever he was…"

"Yeah, I can see that, Shane, I have eyes, you know!"

"Ah, master Gent" said one of the monks. "You have decided to honor us with your presence. We hope that you found everything necessary during your journey!"

"Hang on, so he's the leader of the Legendary Society?" Kris asked, being genuinely surprised.

"Who would have known!" Shane said dramatically, but decided not to make fun of this clichéd turn of events. Instead, he approached Gent to pop the question that had been in his mind for months: "So, hello again, Mr. Gent. You're running this Dirty Dozen, I see, so… can I join? Please, nothing in the world would make me happier!"

"Well, I can see that you are being sincere, so… No!" Gent replied coldly.

"No?" Shane echoed, as if he had heard wrong. "What do you mean 'no'? You allowed Eusine to join, and he's a motor-mouthed, narcissistic psychopath who drives like crazy and is insanely obsessed at Suicune in a very perverted way!"

"Eusine is only on trial, and needs to prove himself to us first" Gent said, and Eusine looked quite disappointed. "Notice how I didn't call him 'brother Eusine'. Besides, that previous outburst shows that you're not very fit to join our organization. We only accept the best, and while Eusine has made generous donations, that hardly qualifies him as a full-time member of the Society."

Gent turned to leave abruptly again, leaving both Shane and Eusine feeling shocked and appalled. They were both angered by this treatment, but also had to accept the cold truth: Gent was right. Before leaving, Gent completed his 'wise old man'-cliché by uttering a strange, pseudo-philosophical phrase:

"But we need to ask ourselves: are we mature enough for Pokémon? Just imagine if things were the other way around. Imagine if Pokémon would treat us like that, forcing us to battle each other and keeping us stored in balls. If humanity isn't going to improve itself, it has no chances of learning about legendary species. And I don't find that very likely!"

"What a tool!" Shane mumbled as Gent left the group.

"I don't know…" Kris said. "I have a feeling that we're going to hear from him again. It remains to be seen whether that is a positive thing or not… I sense a great disturbance here!"

Now that Gent had disappeared once again, the Wise Trio resumed to their regular duties, which involved guarding (and cleaning) the Tin Tower. Morty returned to his gym, and Eusine simply drove away without even bothering to say goodbye. Shane and Kris stayed behind to talk about things.

"Uh, Kris…" Shane said. "I really am sorry about all that crap… I just got carried away. You know how that is. I was just wondering, well… can we still travel together?"

"Shane, right now, there's no one in the world who could be more unpleasant!" Kris said.

"Why, thank you!"

"Yes… but, you know, misery loves company. So, you can come with me. I need someone to get me through the Silver Conference. Thousands of people constantly watching and evaluating me will probably cause anxiety. Come on, let's go and kick Morty's ass."

Shane and Kris sped towards the Ecruteak Gym, together again. For the time being, that was…


	18. We're in a hurry!

**Chapter Eighteen: **_**We're in a hurry!**_

November 17th: "_If I wouldn't know better, and I certainly don't, I'd say that we're making record time here! It was hard, but during a two-on-two match, Kris managed to defeat Morty, albeit just barely. After that, we made to sure to get to the Silver Conference as fast as possible, speeding our way through Mahogany Town and buying some winter clothes. Not only because it's getting quite cold outside, but because we're going to have to cross the Ice Path to get to Blackthorn City. Yes, the Ice Path, that hazardous but eerily beautiful tunnel, freezing cold from the inside, swarming with potentially lethal traps and Pokémon that are all out to kill you, with snow in your eyes, your ears, your nose, your mouth and your-_"

"Shane, stop writing for a second! You're going the wrong way!"

"Please, Kris, I'm not stupid. I… wait, didn't we just come this way?"

Shane and Kris both had bought jackets, gloves and scarves to survive in the Ice Path. Numerous trainers were said to have been buried under the snow or crushed by falling ice. Kris wondered how the authorities were allowing young Pokémon trainers to travel through places as dangerous as this, but the duo nevertheless tried to navigate through the ice-sliding and rock-pushing puzzles required to get through the tunnel.

After going through an extremely tiresome puzzle, Kris and Shane felt that were quite close to the exit. But there was someone else watching their progress, a man in a black cape and a mask made of ice.

"**STOP!**"

Kris and Shane flinched as they saw the Mask of Ice standing on a cliff above them, surrounded by dozens of Ice-type Pokémon, with a Piloswine standing next to him. Neither of them had seen the Mask of Ice before, and therefore, were completely oblivious about his purpose or his meaning.

"**I AM THE MASK OF ICE!**" he announced, his booming voice echoing in the cave, seeing as Shane and Kris didn't know him yet ."**FOR NUMEROUS TIMES HAVE MY UNDERLINGS FAILED AT DEFEATING YOU AND GETTING THE GS BALL, BUT NOW, THE BALL WILL BE MINE. SURRENDER IT TO ME!**"

"_That_ guy is the leader of Neo Team Rocket?"

"Well, it fits…" Shane said, having heard about Kris' adventures from her. "So this guy is the 'monster' who put the group together and sent Dr. Gideon, Phyllis and Philip after us? Oh yeah, and that Nigel guy who gave me a hard time in Kanto."

"**SILENCE! GIVE ME THE GS BALL, OR FACE THE CONSEQUENCES!"**

"What do you think?" Shane asked. "I'm not really in the mood to face any consequences. Should we give him the ball?"

"No, he's the bad guy" Kris reminded. "And while I don't see how the ball is useful at all, the rules of fiction have already taught us that if we give an important item to the villain, he will use it to take over the world or something. So, no dice!"

"**I'M WAITING!"**

"No, we're not giving you the ball!" Kris yelled. "Just try to get it from us!"

"**OH, TRUST ME, I WILL!"** the Masked Man said, then signaled the Ice Pokémon to begin. "**ICY WIND!**"

It was a magnificent sight to see dozens of ice-type Pokémon obeying the Mask of Ice's orders, blowing icy wind from their mouths, but this time, it was potentially lethal. Shane and Kris ran to the exit, but the sheer force caused by all the ice-types using Icy Wind at the same time caused Shane and Kris to trash around futilely. In the hubbub, one of Shane's Poké Balls dropped on the snow, causing Shrew to pop out of its ball. It looked around it sleepily at first, then realized the danger it was in. At first, it desperately wanted to get back into its ball, but then decided to step up, as it realized that Shane and Kris needed to get out as soon as possible. It rushed towards the wall of the cave, digging a tunnel which would lead away from the cave where they were in.

After being thrown into the air for the third time by the Icy Wind, Shane and Kris both fell on the ground, and Shrew rushed to both of them, signaling them to follow it. Just in time as well, as the Mask of Ice's Pokémon were just about to use Blizzard. Shane and Kris managed to fit just barely in the narrow tunnel dug by Sandshrew just as the cave they were in was filling with snow. It took a while for the Mask of Ice to realize that Shane and Kris had slipped away again. At that point, he howled in rage just as the force of the attack of the ice-type Pokémon caused the cave to start collapsing, with huge chunks of ice falling from the ceiling. Shane, Kris and Shrew crawled away as fast as they could, but the tunnel they were in started collapsing too and snow started to pouring from everywhere, covering Shane and Kris entirely.

It wasn't until ten minutes later when Shane realized that he had lost consciousness. While he expected to be freezing cold, he actually found himself wrapped up in a blanket, with Kris sitting next to him, equally confused. Somehow, they had managed to appear in Blackthorn City, with the collapsed exit of the Ice Path behind them.

"What happened?"

"Relax, you two, you'll be fine. But that was a close call."

"Thanks…" Shane said but realized that he was being talked to by a thirty-something year old woman wearing oddly provocative clothing and a black cape like Lance's. "Who the hell are you?! I didn't order a prostitute!"

"I'm Clair, the Blackthorn City Gym Leader" she replied coldly. "And thank _you_ for the friendly demeanor."

"Sorry, you'll get used to my friend soon" Kris said apologetically. "He's a dumbass, so… Anyway, thank you very, very much. You saved our lives!"

"Hey, I didn't save you!" Clair said. "You should thank your Sandshrew, he was the one that dragged you out of that collapsing cave!"

"You did?" Shane said and looked at Shrew, filled with immense gratitude once again. "Thank you so much, Shrew! From now on, I'm not calling you a coward anymore! I promise!"

"I know!" Kris said and gave Shrew a hug as thanks. "Shrew's even braver than you, Shane!"

"Yeah… wait!"

"Well, anyway" Kris said. "So, if you're the gym leader, then maybe we should have a battle, then. I'm aiming for the Pokémon League, and I only need one more badge!"

Clair nodded in agreement and agreed to lead Shane and Kris to the Blackthorn Gym, but as soon as they got to the gym remarkably quickly, her demeanor seemed to change completely. As soon as Kris and Clair started their battle in the Blackthorn Gym, Clair become increasingly arrogant and insulting, constantly trying to psyche Kris into losing. The battle began with Clair using her Dragonair against Kris' Midreavus, and while Misdreavus fought well, it was eventually taken down by Dragonair's Thunderbolt. Next, Kris chose her Croconaw, and by simply biting Dragonair, Croconaw won the match.

Right after defeating Dragonair, Croconaw started glowing and morphing, turning into something much bigger. It retained its blue color and intimidating appearance, but it grew much, much larger, into a Feraligatr which was the size of a van. Clair was obviously intimidated, but nevertheless called out her next Pokémon: a Kingdra. Kingdra was very fast and tough for Feraligatr to beat, especially when Kingdra used its Dragonbreath attack to paralyze Feraligatr. But it still had a hard time defeating Feraligatr, and after Feraligatr stuck Kingdra with an Earthquake and an Ice Punch, Kingdra was down and out.

Kris recalled her Feraligatr and was in complete ecstasy: she had done it. She got her eighth badge of Johto, and there were still three weeks left to enter the Silver Conference.

"Yes!"

"NOOOOOOOO!" Clair screamed, not believing what just happened. "This can't be… I haven't… I don't even… I never lose! You! You must have cheated somehow!"

"Nope" Kris replied calmly. "You just have to face the grim reality of it. My Pokémon were better than yours, I guess."

"Hah! Do you think you have won the badge just yet?" Clair asked, desperately trying to keep her cool. "That was just the first phase of the challenge. You must, uh… Yes, you have to enter the challenge of the Dragon Clan! You have to enter the Dragon's Den, find the hidden shrine in the middle of the underground lake and enter the top-secret, super-hard and incredibly challenging challenge."

"Sounds like a challenge!" Shane thought.

"That's bull!" Kris spouted. "You can't do that. I beat you, you have to give me the Rising Badge, it's in the rules!"

"_I_ make the rules!" Clair announced dramatically. "Now, either go to the Dragon's Den or disappear from my sight for good! Your choice!"

Kris was disgruntled to do so, but nevertheless turned around and started walking towards the Dragon's Den, accompanied by Shane. The old man that usually guarded the cave was apparently sent word of Kris' arrival, because he stepped aside when Kris and Shane approached, allowing them to enter the Den. They descended to the underground lake, and used a rowboat to get to the shrine.

As soon as they got to the shrine, they knocked on the door, and were let in by two, aging members of the dragon clan, wearing red robes with golden dragons imprinted on them. Kris and Shane didn't have much time to admire the dragon-themed decorations, when they were led to the elder of the Dragon Clan, a short, completely bald old man.

"Let me guess…" the elder said before Kris could even open her mouth. "You were sent here by Clair, weren't you? She's my granddaughter, and I'm telling you, she has caused us trouble before. Her heart sometimes overpowers her head…"

"Well, yeah, I guess so…" Kris said. "But, like you surely know already, I already beat her! And now I can't get the badge? What do I have to do now?"

"Don't worry, you only have to answer a few questions" the elder explained. "And at this point, I must say, that I am quite impressed with the way you defeated Clair. There are many other gyms in this region, not just those seven you have battled in earlier, but Clair has gone undefeated for five years. In fact, I don't think she has lost since her battle with Lance…"

"Lance?!" Shane and Kris said, and the elder pointed at something behind them.

Shane and Kris turned around and flinched back a little upon seeing a huge portrait of Lance hanging on the wall. The walls were decorated with pictures of various other dragon-type trainers, Clair included, but Lance's portrait was by far the biggest.

"Lance is perhaps the most accomplished member of our dragon clan" the elder said. "And he's Clair's cousin. Naturally, there's a bit of a rivalry going on between them. Twelve years ago, Clair began her career as Blackthorn's gym leader, and naturally, she didn't have the best start. Years went on and she became better all the time, but Lance was always one step ahead. In fact, when Clair finally got her first victory, Lance was promoted to the Elite Four, and he has advanced higher ever since, becoming champion three years ago. Naturally, you defeating Clair bought back a lot of memories."

"Wow, she's crazy" Shane said. "Clair, I mean."

"Excuse me, but what exactly is _your_ function here, young man?" the elder asked politely.

"Hey, I'm just here with my friend Kris here" Shane said. "And that's only because I have nothing else to do. What, are you going to throw me out?"

"Not at all" the elder said. "I was just wondering, if you would like to take part in the quiz as well?"

"Sure!"

Shane and Kris were both then taken to individual rooms, where a monk asked them both a series of questions made by the dragon elder himself. Instead of being useless bits of trivia like 'What is the air speed velocity of an unladen swallow?', the questions were mostly about Pokémon training, and the importance of love and compassion and other sappy nonsense like that. The two didn't have to think very carefully: the answers were quite obvious. The monks seemed to be amazed, however, and mentioned that very few people had actually passed the test.

After the answers had been submitted to the elder, he seemed to be thoroughly impressed with the results, but had no time to say anything, because at that very minute, Clair arrived to the Den, ready to taunt Kris.

"Well, too bad, looks like you failed the test" Clair mocked, sounding extremely gleeful. "Now, it seems that you need to get out of here, so, bye bye, see you later!"

The dragon elder, however, interrupted this and sternly confronted Clair:

"Clair, this young trainer has already proved her worth. She passed the test with flying colors, and so did he. She is indeed worthy of a Rising Badge!"

Clair was dumbfounded by this revelation, and at first, merely stood still and stared at her grandfather. But when it was apparent that he was not lying, Clair sighed and took out the Rising Badge from her pocket, handing it over to Kris very reluctantly. Clair then turned and began to leave the Den.

"Haven't you forgotten something, Clair?" the elder asked. "This young man here may not have battled you, but he has passed the test that you yourself were unable to pass, which makes him worthy of the Rising Badge as well."

"What, me?" Shane asked. "Really?"

Clair, who stood at the door, was forced to take another badge from her pocket. She then threw it to Shane.

"Just take it!" she said. "Gym leaders today hand them out like candy anyway, I might as well go with the flow!"

And with that, Clair left, and Shane and Kris prepared to leave the Dragon's Den as well. Kris maintained her dignity until she got to the exit of the Den, at which point she jumped into the air, announcing her victory.

"YES!" she screamed. "TAKE THAT, NEW BARK TOWN! SUCK ON IT! I AM THE GREATEST!"

"Nothing like modesty, is there" Shane remarked.

"Oh, who cares about modesty!" Kris said cheerfully. "I've got eight badges. Eight _motherloving _badges. Shane, this means that I can enter the Silver Conference, do you get that?!"

"Yes, I do, and I thought that I would never be the one saying this to you, but: calm down!"

"I can't!" Kris said, sounding hysterical. "Listen, we have got to get out of here! We still have time left, but the Indigo Plateau, where the Silver Conference is held, is far, far away, all the way in Kanto. Besides, I need to visit home before we go there. Come on, come on!"

"I'm right behind ya!" Shane said.

"Oh, no, I'm not falling for that! You just want stare at my ass when you're walking behind me!"

"How did you know that? I thought I was being subtle… Oh, wait, you have some dirt on your pants, let me get them off…"

"Get off me, you freak!"


	19. A Tale of Two Regions

**Chapter Nineteen: **_**A Tale of Two Regions**_

"More baked potatoes, Shane?"

"Yes, please, thank you Mrs. Zimmerman!"

It was November 22nd, and the Silver Conference was going to be held in two weeks. Shane and Kris had stumbled their way through routes 45 and 46 and had returned to New Bark Town, where Shane met Kris' overprotective, homely mom, the cooking and cleaning enthusiast who was almost like a pastiche of every mother from the 50's. Shane and Kris spent one night at Kris' home, and currently, they were having dinner with Professor Elm, who wanted to see Kris' progress personally.

"I must say, Kris, I have never before encountered a trainer who could accomplish so much in so little time. It has only been six weeks since you left my lab with your Totodile, and now you're ever closer to championship!" the professor said, his mouth full of food, which obscured some of his words.

"Thanks!"

"How's the Togepi?" Shane asked.

"Oh yeah, about that…" Elm said and drank some water to get his food down. "It's now a Togetic. It evolved. That being yet another mystery what I want to solve. Why do Pokémon evolve…?"

"Yeah, sure…" Kris said. "Anyway, I guess we're on our way soon. I mean, it's still two weeks before the Silver Conference, so we can still spend a few more nights here. It's much nicer to sleep in a comfy bed rather than in a small, damp tent."

"Two weeks?" Elm said. "The Silver Conference starts in two weeks, but surely you knew that the last day you can sign into the tournament is November 28th, a week before the contest starts."

"…what?"

"Yeah, surely you knew that… you did know that right?"

"No I didn't!" Kris panicked. "You're saying we only have a week to get to the Plateau?!"

"Well, six days actually" Shane said and checked his wristwatch, before realizing that a calendar would be more suitable.

"Then let's go! Come on!"

"Don't be so hasty, dear, you'll get a stomach ulcer or something!" Kris' mom said. "Shane, would you like another steak?"

"Oh, yes please, Mrs. Z!"

"Mom, stop embarrassing me!" Kris snapped, much to her mother's confusion. "And Shane, you don't have time to eat another steak, we have to get out of here!"

"Come on, I was just starting to like it here!" Shane objected. "This town is great, it's so peaceful. For once, some icy, mask-wearing maniacs aren't trying to kill me!"

"OK, I guess I can be a bit more lenient…" Kris said. "Eat your steak and please, take a shower! _Then_ we can go!"

"Fine…"

After Shane had spent an unnecessarily long time in the shower and gotten dressed as slowly as possible, Shane and Kris were set to go. They hastily packed up their belongings and started hiking towards the Indigo Plateau. Their first obstacle was the large body of water separating Kanto and Johto, Route 27. After they made their way through the Tohjo Falls with the help from Feraligatr, Starmie and Shane's Poliwrath, Swirly, they started their long, long walk towards the Victory Road. It took Shane three days to realize that they were already in Kanto, Shane's home region. He felt a bit unfamiliar with the scenery, though, because when he was last there, he was sitting in Eusine's car, speeding towards the Pokémon League. During the fourth day, Shane and Kris passed through Route 22, the route leading to Viridian City. It never even crossed Shane's mind to return to Viridian City. In fact, he already had a different life planned out: one which would involve settling down with Kris and moving to Ecruteak City where Shane would eventually become the Legendary Society's leader, preferably with lots of money, cars, a huge mansion and lots of servants. Then again, settling down with Kris would cancel out having lots of skanks in bikinis around the mansion, but the vision wasn't quite clear to Shane yet.

Finally, it was November 28th. The last chance to sign in was at 7 PM, because that was when the place would close down and not be opened until the beginning of the Silver Conference. Shane and Kris, after navigating through the Victory Road, were starved, tired to death and almost completely fed up with each other, having argued about directions throughout their trip. But now they had arrived, to the front gate of the Indigo Plateau. Just as the receptionist was about to close down the place, Kris rushed to the counter and signed herself in. Shane only had five badges, so he couldn't enter, but he made sure that he was going to root for Kris as soon as the tournament would begin.

But as Shane and Kris left, the receptionist was closing. At that very moment, seconds before it was 7 PM, Fernando rushed into the Indigo Plateau. He was hell bent on entering the Silver Conference to prove his worth, and as he receptionist was shutting down the hatch of the reception desk, Fernando ran to the desk and jammed his fingers on the counter - only to have the hatch close on them.

"OUCH!"

"Hey, watch your fingers, buddy" the receptionist said. "What do you want?"

"Why do you think I risked my beautiful fingers in this attempt, hmm?" Fernando asked in his usual, over-the-top manner. "If you didn't realize it yet, I wish to enter this tournament you call Pokémon battling, if that's okay with you?"

"No, it's not OK" the receptionist said and prepared to close the hatch again. "You see, entering closed at 7 PM. It's currently 7:01."

"Well, if you would have been more concerned with doing your job instead of crushing my fingers, it would still be 7 PM, you stupid lady!"

But it was these last words that prompted the receptionist to shut down, permanently, with a little note saying 'CLOSED' attached to the hatch. Fernando was steaming, and resorted to swearing in Spanish, but there was little he could do that, besides mailing a threatening letter to the Pokémon League. Then, it hit him. If society wouldn't accept him for who he was, society would pay. Now that he was in Kanto, he would commit an act which would surely make him remembered. Snickering to himself, Fernando left the Pokémon League in order to complete his plan.

A week passed as Kris trained herself to the max, making sure her Pokémon team of five would be as tough as possible. It wasn't until later that Kris heard that she would need six Pokémon once she got to the finals, so Shane agreed to borrow his Starmie for her. While she wasn't sure whether or not Starmie would obey her, Shane assured that Starmie was so powerful that all Kris would need to do was to say the attack name and let Starmie do the rest. While Kris trained, Shane checked out who else was competing in the Silver Conference. While the contest was held on international levels, Shane couldn't see any famous faces, most likely because the Elite Four wouldn't appear before the contests, Shane still recognized two unfortunately familiar faces: Silver, who didn't seem to even notice Shane at all, and Damien, who Shane tried to avoid as much as possible. Both seemed to be quite keen on getting as far as possible.

The contests finally began December 6th, and as Shane watched from the bleachers, he could easily see that Silver hadn't really been preparing for the Silver Conference much. He was constantly nervous, saying wrong attacks and eventually lost his first two matches, which caused him to drop out of the contests. Shane didn't really feel sorry for Silver; after all, he was an extremely rude jerk who stole Poké Conference lasted for five days, and the last two days were all about the finals. During the penultimate day, the remaining twenty-four members were all pitted against each other. Among the finalists was Gold, Kris' mysterious rival who Shane could finally see in flesh. But as Gold's name was announced and his face was shown on the jumbo screen, accompanied by massive cheering from the audience, Shane couldn't help to wonder why such a big deal was made out of him: Gold was just another, generic trainer wearing the standard, red generic trainer-clothes. The crowd seemed to love him, and he was indeed a competent battle, as he made it to the top sixteen, along with Kris and Damien. Unfortunately enough, during those elimination rounds, Kris lost and dropped out, and during the battles of the top eight, Damien lost as well.

Kris was obviously disappointed by her loss, but surprisingly enough, it didn't bother her that much: after all, she had gotten far enough. She did feel a slight sting seeing Gold make it to the final, though. The final battle was held between Gold and a relatively tough trainer from Sinnoh, and while the battle was quite spectacular, Gold nevertheless won. Being the ultimate winner of the Silver Conference, Gold was granted the ability to battle through the Elite Four and eventually face the Pokémon League Champion. Gold accepted the possibility, seeing as he made it so far already. The Elite Four, who were also the judges of the contest, then battled Gold one at a time, first in three-on-three matches. Gold was pitted against the flamboyant magician and psychic-type user Will: the ninja master and former gym leader Koga, who used poison types; the master of Fighting-types, the muscular Bruno and finally Karen, the mysterious but rather sexy dark-type user. While Gold struggled and nearly tied once, he nevertheless defeated all four in a row, which was something no one had achieved after the triumphs of Red and Blue three years ago. Finally, Gold was able to face the Champion.

While Shane and Kris already knew who the Champion was, they were still amazed when Lance made an impressive, but not too over-the-top entrance to the battle arena, riding on his Dragonite. As the battle between Gold and Lance commenced, the result was predictable. Not only did Lance's little Dratini immediately defeat Gold's starter, Typhlosion, but Gold's team was thoroughly shattered when Lance used the red Gyarados he captured earlier. The whole crowd was amazed by this, including Shane, who took a picture of the magnificent beast so he could add more to his clipbook. Of course, Shane was slightly disappointed when Kris pointed out that all Pokémon had 'shiny' counterparts that were basically the same, but rarer and with a different color scheme.

The red Gyarados knocked out four of Gold's Pokémon, leaving him with only one, his Scizor, which was able to take down the Gyarados, only to be knocked out by Lance's powerhouse, Dragonite. And before the crowd knew it, the battle was over. Lance had triumphed again and retained his status as the Pokémon League Champion.

After the awe-inspiring battle was over, everyone promptly moved on with their lives, and people were flooding out from the Indigo Plateau to continue their meaningless lives. But Kris had a score to settle with Gold. He was easy to find, though: he was complaining to Lance about the loss, believing that Lance had cheated some way. As Gold noticed Kris, she immediately started ranting at him before he could say anything:

"Don't interrupt me, Gold, I'm speaking now, you're not taking this moment from me!" Kris said. "You made it farther than me, so I have to face it, you're better than me, no hard feelings, you douchebag!"

"Uh, hi, Gold, I'm Shane, and you probably know Kris already, I think" Shane said, introducing himself rather warily. "So, you made your way here pretty fast, no?"

"Y-yeah…" Gold said, rather confused by Kris' sudden outburst. "Well, you know, I… I mean, I didn't do any of those side quests, so I just rushed my way here, working my Pokémon to the max until I got here… I've been actually waiting here for several weeks before the Conference even started!"

"No way!" Kris shouted. "You mean you just left all the dangerous jobs to us? Let's see… while you were having fun and defeating gym leaders, I had to climb on top of the Sprout Tower, get lost at sea, deliver potions, get almost killed in the Ice Path and defeat Team Rocket several times. Asshole!"

"OK, break it up, I'm tired of listening to this!" Lance said, stepping in and breaking off this argument. "You obviously have some issues, so work them out on your own time. Gold, I'm impressed that you were able to beat the Elite Four, but you lost, get over it and get out!"

Gold was hesitant to do so, but nevertheless left the Indigo Plateau for good, vowing to never return. Lance, however, seemed to be mildly surprised to see that Shane and Kris knew each other, and told Shane the whole story about Kris' and Lance's escapade in Mahogany Town, and Shane was quite jealous to hear about it. After a few minutes of chit-chat, Lance left, and Shane and Kris decided to return to New Bark Town - somehow.

Eventually, it was December 15th when Shane and Kris finally got back to New Bark Town. The weather couldn't be better - sure it was cold, but very Christmas-y, especially when it started snowing. The snow made New Bark Town look like a very wholesome and inviting. It seemed that Professor Elm was watching the show, as he was ready to meet Kris and Shane at Kris' doorstep, together with Kris' mother.

"Congratulations!" Elm cheered as soon as Kris approached the house. "Our Champion has returned!"

"What do you mean? I'm not the Champion, I didn't even get to the Elite Four!"

"Oh, who cares!" Mrs. Zimmerman said. "No one in our family has gotten as far as you. If only your father was here to see this… but that's quite impossible, with him blind and all."

"And besides, Champion or not, someone who has gotten as far you deserves a reward!" Elm said, taking something from his pocket.

"Ooh, what it could be?" Shane wondered. "Money? Gold? Jewelry? The original series of Star Trek in one DVD-box?"

"Ta-dah!"

Elm gave Kris two…tickets.

"Tickets?"

"Yes, tickets for the S.S. Aqua. It's a ship that departs from Olivine City two times a week. It can take you to Vermilion City, Kanto, where you'll have lots of new gyms to conquer. And Shane can accompany you!"

"Well, we just came back from Kanto? Can't we just go through the gate to Viridian City?" Shane asked.

"No!" Elm said. "You'll have to use the ship, okay?"

"But don't leave just yet!" Mrs. Zimmerman said. "The holidays are coming, we have to buy tons of stuff and go through the Christmas hassle that we go through every year, panic and run around and hope that everything works out for the best. Shane, you can stay here for the holidays as well!"

"Well, sure, I'd love to, if just… if it's OK with Kris?"

"Yeah, it's OK with me" Kris smiled. "But, you know, try not to drink too many eggnogs and start hitting on me or something."

"I can't promise you that, but I'll try to try!"


	20. The twists and turns of life

**Chapter Twenty: **_**The twists and turns of life**_

January 5th: "_After spending a rather…interesting Christmas and New Year's in New Bark Town, watching the local inhabitants party down like it was 1999 again or something, I'm now on the S.S. Aqua, together with Kris, heading towards Kanto. Again. Hopefully things haven't changed too much during my the three months I spent in Johto. A lot has happened to me, though. My Golbat has evolved into a Crobat, but it's still called Zuba, for no good reason. I also gave nickname for my Heracross. For some reason, I like to call it 'Fredrik', but hey, it's a good name, right? Right?"_

Shane was in for a big surprise. At first, everything seemed to be the same, at least in Vermilion City, where Shane and Kris spent a night at. Kris defeated the local gym leader, Lt. Surge, without much effort. This wasn't really because of Kris' abilities or anything, more because Lt. Surge's Pokémon were surprisingly weak. Nevertheless, Shane could see Vermilion City identical as always. The guy doing construction work was still strapped for cash and a huge Snorlax was blocking the way, as always. But the next morning, when Kris and Shane woke up, things were very, very different. While everything seemed normal on the surface, the people were obviously freaked out by something, as they kept running around, screaming incoherent phrases and looting stores just like those good, old-fashioned rioting days.

"What the hell is going on?" Kris asked.

"I don't know… maybe we should buy a paper?"

"Yeah, but the Poké Mart is still closed at this hour, so a newspaper salesman would have to appear right about… now!"

"Extra! Extra! The Power Plant goes out of business! Read all about it from the Kanto Tribune!"

Shane and Kris looked behind them, and as it turned out, a conveniently placed boy selling newspapers walked towards them. Kris bought one issue from this clichéd character and the duo proceeded to read it together:

"_The Kanto Power Plant, which was restored and put back in business two months ago, has just suddenly stopped functioning. Police investigators are puzzled as always: 'God damn it, take care of your own damn crimes, stupid bastards' says the DCI of the Cerulean City Police, Barry 'Blistering Barnacle' Boop. The security personnel of the Power Plant didn't seem to notice anything out of the ordinary, although they do stress that the incident happened during their coffee break. The Manager of the Power Plant gave us plenty of technical nonsense and then explained what really went on: ' Some punk stole a part of my beloved generator. My sweet, sweet, generator. It's OK, don't try to talk, generator. Daddy's here… Er-hem, anyway, I'm offering a 10,000 whatever reward from the capture of the culprit - dead or alive!'_. _This reporter is working on the case! Ten thousand whatevers, holy macaroni! (Text by award-winning journalist Fred Zachowski)_"

"Ten thousand whatevers…" Shane echoed. "Kris, we've got to do something. Not because of the money, but because of, uh… responsibility! And, uh, things like that!"

"Forget it!" Kris said sternly. "I need to get as much badges as possible. I was on the phone with Professor Elm last night, and he told me that Professor Oak, the authority on Pokémon here in Kanto has issued a challenge to trainers: someone in possession of sixteen badges will receive a special prize! So, we don't have time to do anything like that. Come on, let the police handle that!"

"Yeah, but we have to do it ourselves anyway!" Shane reminded Kris. "After all, if someone else would do stuff for us, this story would be rather boring, would it?"

"OK, here's an idea…" Kris suggested. "We'll go through Saffron City, defeating the gym leader there, then we go to Cerulean, where I can go challenge the gym leader and you can go and try to find out who stole what from who now."

"So be it!"

Traveling as fast as possible, Shane and Kris first started hiking towards the capital city of Kanto, Saffron City, the metropolis of shining wonders or whatever it was called. In Saffron, the group realized just how important the Power Plant was to Kanto: sure, the people still had electricity, but various large facilities were completely closed down. The Magnet Train wasn't moving an inch, the Underground Pathways were closed and, much to the distress of the people, the Radio Tower was not functioning, although Kris and Shan found it to be a relief, since they were spared by the ramblings and poop jokes of incurably insane DJ's. What came more as a shock to Shane was that the Pokémon Tower, the grave site of hundreds of Pokémon, had been replaced by a Radio Tower. If Shane would have been any smarter, this blatant example of capitalism destroying the society would have affected him, but now he was just pissed. Kris was disgusted as well, but found it to be a relief to see that the graves had been moved to the nearby Soul House, tended by Mr. Fuji. Shane and Kris briefly visited him as well, and Mr. Fuji seemed to remember Shane, which was rather going through a detour in Celadon City, Shane and Kris finally made their way to Cerulean City. Kris was becoming quite smug, seeing as she had eleven badges already, and felt like she was on fire. That wasn't going to help her against Misty, though, but Kris was certain that her Pokémon were good enough against Misty's. While Kris challenged Misty, Shane made his way towards the Power Plant. Shane was quite interested in seeing what had become of Power Plant. It took him a while to realize, though, that now that the Power Plant had been restored, Zapdos was most likely gone. Shane wasn't going to give up, though. He was going to see more and more legendary Pokémon, some day.

The security guards didn't seem to mind letting Shane in, and the Power Plant itself was radically different than before. It had been cleaned out of all rubble and wild Pokémon and it was transformed into a place of work. Currently, however, the employees just sat in front of their desks and lounged around. Most of the room in the Power Plant was occupied by the enormous generator, and the manager walked back and forth around the generator, yelling and mumbling at something:

"…I'll show that punk. I'll get him good! Teach him to mess with my beloved generator. My sweet generator. No one can touch it. Only me!"

"Uh, excuse, Mr. Manager?" Shane asked.

"Yes? What do you want? Who let you in here?"

"I let my self in, I do that a lot" Shane said. "Now, before you have bulked-up goons dragging me out and throwing me into a ditch, hear me out. I'll find that no-good punk for you. I'm just asking one favor. You see, I'm not really a police officer, a detective or a private investigator. I'm more like a freelance Legendary Pokémon Watcher and Learn-About-er. Come to think of it, I could be a private dick. Like Shaft… Uh, anyway, yeah, I have derailed myself. Anyway, I'll find that goon and bring back the stolen part!"

"Well, I'm in really hot water here, and the police are not doing anything…" the manager pondered. "OK, so be it. Find the bastard for me. But you have twenty-four hours!"

"Why?"

"I don't know, but you just have. Go! Go, go, go!"

"I just have one request" Shane said. "Like I said, I am very excited about legendaries. The legendary bird Zapdos once held this place as its habitat, you know. So, if I get back the machine part… will you abandon this place again and move somewhere else?"

"Well, moving location would take us probably 20-25 months and cost us millions of whatevers, so… no! But I'll give you a TM!"

"OK, deal!" Shane said. "You won't regret this!"

Shane returned to Cerulean City, but at that point, realized that he had no leads, nowhere to start investigating and no one to help him. Naturally, this didn't stop him from trying to get to the bottom of things, so he kept asking people about the culprit. The people were quite helpful, with one actually telling that he saw a 'suspicious-looking character' run towards the Cerulean Cape, carrying something that seemed like a part of some machine. This helpful advice led Shane to the Cerulean Cape, where he indeed saw a mysterious character, whom he decided to ambush.

Unfortunately, even though the person 'looked mysterious', he was still the wrong one. After Shane had finished apologizing to the man he tried to beat up, he was more focused and tried to search someone who could be the real culprit. As he did so, he was being stalked by someone else. After a while, Shane realized that someone was only inches away from him, creeping behind him, so Shane turned around quickly and confronted the black-uniformed Mexican grunt trying to strangle him from behind.

"Fernando! What are you doing here? Wait, you're the one who stole the machine part, right?"

"Yes, but-"

"Damn, I'm good!" Shane exclaimed and raised the roof for a moment. "It took me less than an hour to find the bad guy. Oh yeah!"

"I was trying to prevent you from seeing me by using my patented 'give it from behind'-technique, but it seems to have failed" Fernando said. "But you don't honestly think that I am just going to hand this machine part to you?"

"Well, to tell you the truth, I did…" Shane said. "Why did you steal it in the first place?"

"Well, before you start the whole 'terrorism'-related nonsense, I-"

"A-ha! So you admitted it! It's an act of terrorism, something that you did just because you were pissed off by something!"

"Partially, yes" Fernando admitted. "But it's more than that. These people, these so-called 'authorities' today are suppressing our freedom of speech and monitoring our every move and trying to manipulate us into living in fear and coping their every whim! Individual thought is suppressed and our constitutional rights are violated all the time, and yet, no one does anything. Worse yet, people today are thinking of new ways to censor the net while they should be focusing on real problems and _real_ terrorism! So, I did the only reasonable thing to do: I stole an important artifact to show people what terrorism and living in fear are _really_ like. There's no logic behind it, but I'm still pretty reasonable, I think."

"Reasonable?" Shane said. "That might be stretching the term. Why on earth did you start rambling about that?"

"I'm not too sure" Fernando said. "Author Filibuster, I guess?"

"Sure" Shane said. "Can I see that machine part for a minute?"

"Of course" Fernando said and handed the part to Shane.

Shane looked at the part for a minute, briefly glanced at Fernando and started running away. Fernando contemplated on chasing after Shane for a moment, but decided to give up.

"Damn it, how did I fall into that one" Fernando sighed. "Oh well, better luck next time. And until then, at least I caused a brief period of fear that showed people how fearsome Team Rocket can really be! Fear our name, everyone! As soon as my cheque clears, I shall be one of the organization's fearsome members! Fwa ha haa!"

**...**

Shane returned the machine part to the manager, who gave Shane the TM, but unfortunately, Shane didn't get any credit for his actions as the local police officers shoved him away and proceeded to take the credit. Shane merely returned to the Cerulean Gym, and saw Kris leaving with a Cascadebadge, proclaiming her victory. Their next stop would be Pewter City, but to get there, they would have to cross through Mt. Moon. They both found the idea to be repulsive, so they first decided to check out Fuchsia City. In the meantime, the Power Plant was back in business, and thanks to that, the Magnet Train and the Radio Tower were up and running resident gym leader in Fuchsia, Janine, was the easiest to beat, so Shane and Kris quickly got over that and returned to Cerulean and started navigating around Mt. Moon. Unlike last summer, Mt. Moon was now deserted, save for one trainer who kept training his Golbat, using it to battle against the numerous wild Pokémon at the area. Unfortunately for Shane and Kris, the trainer in question was the ever-present, abusive rival Silver. They had nowhere to run, because Silver noticed them and approached them. But much to Shane's and Kris' surprise, Silver's attitude was completely different than before.

"Uh, hello, Silver" Kris said. "Sorry to see you dropping out so early during the Silver Conference… what are you doing here?"

"I'm just training. The Indigo League Challenge is going to be held next year, so I can just enter that, I guess" Silver replied, without any insults.

This exchange was followed by awkward silence, which Shane decided to break:

"So, anyway, nice Golbat, Silver!"

"Yeah…" Silver said and recalled the Golbat back into its Poké Ball. "But for some reason, it has refused to evolve."

"My Golbat has evolved already" Shane announced proudly. "And besides, yours will too, some day. When the Golbat likes its trainer very much, it will evolve. It's rather surprising that my Pokémon even like me, seeing as they don't get to battle too often, but whatever."

"OK, I'll see what I can do" Silver said. "The next time you see me, I'll have a Crobat!"

"Great!" Kris said. "Now, excuse me, Silver, but we're in a rush. I've still got three badges left to collect around Kanto!"

To avoid uncomfortable situations, Shane and Kris left towards Pewter City while Silver departed Mt. Moon and went his own way. Shane and Kris didn't talk much during their short hike to Pewter, and Shane mostly thought about Silver and how he was going to manage. Now that he wasn't a jerk anymore, he wasn't as interesting, but his relevance to the plot shouldn't be discussed until later on...

Pewter City's budget had undergone severe strains, and the town was still as boring as ever, but even more so now that the museum was closed. To avoid being bored to death, Shane and Kris decided to just go and challenge Brock as soon as possible. But they couldn't even get to the gym when a cheerful bird keeper with a clean-cut hair and dirty overalls approache them. Shane could immediately recognize the bird keeper, but didn't feel any better knowing who it was as he waved and yelled at Shane:

"Shane! Hi, Shane! It's me, Timmy!"

"Oh, Christ…" Shane moaned. "Hello, Timmy! Good to see you! Not…" he added, muttering the last word under his breath. "I'd like you to meet my friend, Kris Zimmerman!"

"Uh, hi!"

"Hello, there, Kris Zimmerman!" Timmy said and cheerfully shook hands with Kris. "My name is Timmy, me and Shane go way back. I'm talking, seven months back!"

"It's true… unfortunately" Shane said.

"So, what have you been up to, gangsta?" Timmy asked. "Something big, I hope. No, I don't just hope. I know it! You're the man, Shane."

"Yeah, sure… Well, I've been in Johto for about four months and I arrived here a few days ago…"

"Yeah, cool, Johto!" Timmy said. "Man, why weren't you at the Indigo Conference last summer, you missed out on all the good battles, friend!"

"Yeah, the guards wouldn't let me in, but enough about that…" Shane said. "So, how is, uh, Leaf doing?"

Suddenly, in a matter of nanoseconds, Timmy lost his over-excited demeanor and looked quite depressed.

"Well, I don't know…" he mumbled quietly. "That whore is probably hanging around with some hikers or sailors or something, somewhere… Frankly, I don't care! During the Indigo Conference, that tramp even hung out with that annoying Damien guy, can you believe that?"

"Truthfully, I can't" Shane said. "But yeah, it's certainly been _interesting_ talking to you, but alas, we have to hurry, and besides-"

"'We'?" Timmy repeated, now smiling again. "You mean, you two are, like, together or something? Together forever, never separating, eternal love, nudge nudge, say no more, say no more, right?"

"No!" Kris said. "Definitely not together, we're friends, you know. It's been nice talking to you, Tommy, or whateverthehell your name is. Buh bye!"

January 13th: "_After Kris was subtle enough to lose Timmy, we rushed into the Pewter Gym and Kris got her fourteenth badge. Truthfully, her success is becoming almost scary. But, on the other hand, these Kanto gym leaders seem to be real pushovers when compared to the ones in Johto, like Morty or Clair. Anyways, we also went through Viridian City. I showed Kris around the town and she defeated Blue. I even showed her where my house was, but we didn't visit it, because I don't want her to realize that I'm still living with my parents. How embarrassing would that be? Anyway, we borrowed a boat from Professor Oak and are making good progress during our trip towards Cinnabar Island. Kanto seems to be very, very different from what it used to be, but I hope that at least Cinnabar Island is OK!"_

After sailing for literally _several_ minutes, Shane and Kris arrived to Cinnabar Island. But instead of the warm, lovely little island that Shane had visited a few months ago, Cinnabar seemed like a post-apocalyptic wasteland or something now. According to a little sign left on the Cinnabar beach, some sort of abomination, possibly a Pokémon but more monstrous, caused the Cinnabar Volcano to erupt, destroying the island completely. Shane and Kris didn't bother to start looking for familiar human remains from the ruins of the island, because they also saw another, smaller sign nearby. The sign was scribbled by Blaine, who had moved his gym to a cave at the Seafoam Islands. So, despite knowing the dangers of seafaring well, Shane and Kris decided to defy all odds and head towards the Seafoam Islands.

The trip went surprisingly smoothly, and there weren't much annoying swimmers and fishermen on the way, so Shane and Kris got to the Seafoam Islands. Blaine was not happy about losing his gym, but he seemed to be quite happy that he got to see Shane:

"Shane! My friend and savior! You have found my lair, and you have come to challenge this old man for a final showdown!"

"Uh, hi Blaine, and no, sorry, I'm not really into that stuff anyway" Shane explained to the slightly disappointed Blaine. "Blaine, this is Kris, a friend of mine!"

"Hello, young lady, and may I say, you have chosen your friends well!" Blaine said, kissing Kris' palm. "For what I owe this honor?"

"Well, if you don't mind, we could have a battle" Kris suggested. "I'm only one badge short!"

"Very well, then, but remember, I'm not going slow on you!" Blaine said.

The battle between Kris and Blaine was rather blazing, the pun being rather unnecessary, but described the battle well. In a three-on-three match, Kris basically just started with her Feraligatr, easily wiping out Blaine's Ninetales, Magcargo and Magmar, without Kris even needing to use any other Pokémon. Even Blaine himself, who had seen numerous battles over the years, was quite impressed with the way Kris had battled, going as far as telling Shane that 'she's a keeper', much to Shane's confusion.

When Shane and Kris left the temporary 'gym', with Kris having the full collection of badges, Kris seemed to be more impressed on how Shane seemingly knew everyone in Kanto.

"I wouldn't say 'everyone'" Shane said modestly. "I just know, Blaine, all the other gym leaders, Lance, Leaf and Timmy, Bill, Mr. Fuji, Professor Oak, you know, everyone knows them. I think. Besides, Blaine is just too creepy for me."

"But did you see how friendly he was to you?" Kris asked. "It doesn't matter who he was and why he liked you, he's your friend, and there's no need to complain about your lack of friends since you obviously have them. Like with that Timmy guy... Sure, he was annoying, but you treated him quite rudely, even though he was being constantly friendly towards you."

"Hey, I don't need any more friends" Shane said. "I've got you, and that's more than enough..."

"Well anyway, hopefully your connections to Professor Oak will pay off" Kris said, ignoring Shane's last comment. "We're going to Pallet Town next, and I'm hoping that my prize will be a banger!"


	21. The Quest that ends it all

**Chapter Twenty-one: _The Quest that ends it all..._**

"…which goes to prove that J.R.R. Tolkien stole all his ideas from me. Now, seeing as I am _the_ authority on Pokémon, and as _the_ authority on Pokémon, I've got certain responsibilities in Kanto. Due to my unmatched wisdom, my full knowledge on Pokémon behavior, habitat, types, moves and battles and my stunningly good looks, I have been practically unchallenged. As such, it is my duty to oversee the fine young trainers roam around this region, earning badges. But it is rare to see the day that a trainer actually gets sixteen badges, and to which I, the great professor Oak, need to comment that-"

"Just cut the crap and give me the prize!"

Kris and Shane went to visit Professor Oak to reclaim Kris' badge, but immediately realized that it was a mistake. Professor Oak kept rambling on about his own excellence on every field and almost forgot to prize. When Kris snapped him back into reality, he gave it to Kris. But much to Kris' (not to mention Shane's) disappointment, it was just a note.

"Uh, what does it do?" Kris asked.

"It's a note signed by me" Oak explained. "That, young lady, will grant you access to Mt. Silver, which is home to some of the most powerful Pokémon on the planet. It's the ultimate challenge for Pokémon trainers, and most of all because my favorite student, Red, is rumored to be hiding somewhere in there, waiting for a suitable challenger. Or, so I was told by Red's mother."

"Wow, this is great!"

"Yeah!" Shane said. "Mt. Silver, here we come!"

"No, not you!" Oak said to Shane. "Unless you have sixteen badges, that is."

"Well, not quite, but I have five badges, I just got the fifth one few days ago when I defeated Brock!"

"That's not really enough" Oak scolded. "You wouldn't survive for a second at Mt. Silver!"

"It's true, he wouldn't" Kris said. "He's a little… accident-prone."

"Tell me something, _professor_ Oak" Shane said. "We just heard your 'live broadcast', 'Professor Oak's Pokémon Talk with DJ Mary' from the radio just a few minutes ago, and yet here you are, just standing in your lab, doing nothing. What's the dealie, yo?"

"Well, it… Uh, I… You see, it…" Oak stuttered, trying to think of something. "Uh… you two should really get going now, it's getting dark outside and all that…"

Because Shane pointed out this rather uncomfortable, yet surprisingly obvious fact, he and Kris were driven out of Professor Oak's laboratory. Together, they walked towards Viridian City, and there they had to admit that only Kris was going to be allowed to enter Mt. Silver. So, there was nothing left to do but to say goodbye, for now.

"Well, see you later, I guess. Try not to get yourself killed!" Kris said and shook hands with Shane.

"Yeah, right" Shane moped. "You go on to Mt. Silver and have fun while I get bored to tears here in Viridian City…"

"I knew you'd understand" Kris said. "Well, listen, I have to go, but I'll call you, yeah?"

Shane didn't reply, so Kris left and as she was already out of reach, Shane realized that he didn't know Kris' phone number and Kris didn't know his. It was pointless to call out of her anymore, so Shane was just left standing on the exact same spot for a few minutes. Then, his cell phone rang, and Shane wishfully answered the phone, thinking that it somehow could have been Kris:

"Hello?"

"Hello, Shane?" said a voice belonging to an old man, and Shane was immediately disappointed. "It's me Kurt, the Poké Ball maker from Azalea Town. Are you busy?"

"Hi, Kurt…" Shane replied apathetically. "No, I'm not busy, what's up?"

"This is important!" Kurt said, with a sense of urgency in his voice. "Do you still have the GS Ball with you? Please tell me that you do!"

"Calm down, I have that useless little ball with me…" Shane said.

"Good, I want you to get over here to Azalea Town as soon as possible, I really, really need you right now!"

"Yeah, but I'm currently in Viridian City!" Shane said. "Even I if I come there running all the way, without stopping to eat, sleep or anything, it will still take me about two days to get there."

"OK, well, when you get to New Bark Town, I'll come and pick you up, I have a car, after all. Now, come on, leave right now!"

"Yeah, yeah, keep your hair on…" Shane said. "Oh, wait, you can't, because you don't have any! Hah!"

After this stupid phone conversation was over, Shane started hiking towards the Tohjo Falls. He had a hard time remembering the exact route, but somehow, with the help from Swirly and Starmie, Shane got past the Tohjo Falls and arrived all the way to New Bark Town, being even faster than he thought he would be. Now that he was there, he decided to visit Professor Elm's laboratory.

"Hi, Professor!" Shane said as he nonchalantly walked into Elm's lab without bothering to knock. "You busy?"

"As a matter of fact, I am!" Elm said impatiently. "I'm in the middle of some research, but if you have to come, then come check this out!"

Shane shrugged and walked to Elm, who was accompanied by three Pokémon. The white one flying around was most likely Togetic, Togepi's evolved form. The other two were somewhat obscure to Shane, but Shane could still recognize the human shaped, colorful, mime-resembling Pokémon, Mr. Mime. The other Pokémon, however, was completely unfamiliar to Shane. It was a blob that was almost entirely blue except for its black tail, and it basically just stood still and looked like it suffered from constipation 24/7.

"Aren't these two great?" Elm said. "You being from Kanto and all, you probably recognize Mr. Mime, here. As for this magnificent, blue thing, it's called a Wobbuffet. I'm not sure what it does, exactly… You see, due to my discovery of the Pokémon egg, trainers and Daycare Centers from around the world are sending me their eggs to be researched! Well, not around the world, exactly, but I got two. They hatched into these little baby Pokémon I had never seen before. One was a Mime Jr. and the other was a Wynaut. My encyclopedia, called 'The Book of 250 Pokémon and nothing more', didn't know anything about them!"

"And now they evolved into these critters?" Shane asked.

"Oh yes, which is weird, because I didn't know anything about their supposed pre-evolutions until now!" Elm said. "Anyway, I'm still in hot water here… The Chikorita that was stolen still hasn't been found…"

Shane was quiet, as he didn't have the heart to tell Elm that Silver stole it and it had already evolved into a Meganium.

"…and I need it, because a young trainer, I forgot his name, is going to start a journey in a few days. I need to give him a young, freshly caught Pokémon, like I promised!"

"Can't you just give the trainer that Mr. Mime, or that Wobbuffet?"

"No, that's impossible!" Elm said. "Neither of them are freshly caught, so they couldn't obey him unless I would trade it to something else - which is impossible because that boy doesn't have any Pokémon. Besides, I need that Wobbuffet for research. Mind you, I could give the Mr. Mime away if you know some good trainer…"

"Nah, I don't know anyone…" Shane said. "And I already have six Pokémon…"

"But, if you gave one to me briefly, you would have an open slot?" Elm asked, and Shane nodded. "That's great!" Elm said, and recalled Wobbuffet into its ball. "So, you can briefly keep Wobbuffet with you, right? You see, I need to find out what it _does_ exactly. Just return it to me later! I'll hold on to your Starmie while you keep Wobbuffet with you!"

Shane sighed, as he didn't want to keep a thoroughly useless Pokémon with him, but he also couldn't refuse, so he accepted Wobbuffet for a moment. It agreed to obey Shane, although it still didn't to anything. Before Kurt arrived to pick Shane up, Shane tried to use Wobbuffet to battle against a wild Sentret he saw nearby. But it didn't seem to know any moves that Shane tried to tell it to use. Wobbuffet was apparently a Psychic-type, but it didn't know Confusion, Psybeam or anything like that. It didn't even know Tackle! When Kurt finally arrived, Shane recalled the Wobbuffet and decided to find out its purpose later on.

The ride towards Azalea Town was quiet, but after Shane and Kurt had arrived to Azalea, Kurt started explaining what he had in mind.

"Hand me the GS Ball!" Kurt demanded.

"OK, here you go!" Shane said. "But, you know, I tried to open it with all possible means. I threw it down into a crevice, I tried to crack it open with a hammer, I tried yelling at it-"

"You didn't break it, did you?" Kurt asked, looking quite worried.

"No, I didn't, but what's the big deal, even if I had broken it?"

"Well, in case of a normal Poké Ball, the Pokémon inside it would simply be released for good…" Kurt explained. "But the GS Ball has a completely different mechanism. You see, back in the old days, we used Apricorns to catch Pokémon. Basically, I would pick up Apricorns, hollow out the fruit and fit it with a special device that would shrink the Pokémon in order to make it fit into the ball, thus enabling capture. But the mechanism was very dangerous. You see, the devices were frail. If they would break down, the Pokémon would grow back to their actual size whilst inside the ball. And, you know, that would be _really_ unhealthy to the Pokémon. I'm talking _crush, splat_ and _eww!"_

"Yeah, there's no need to be graphic about it!" Shane said, rather disgusted by the way Pokémon used to be captured, but also interested in hearing more.

"Well, anyway, it was about forty years ago, when the freshly formed company called Silph Co started developing something that would be more safer to capture the Pokémon without having to worry about crushing them into goo. So, I was called into a group that would develop the new mechanism. Together, we came up with a technology that would revert the Pokémon into _pure energy_. That way, the Pokémon had a comfy time inside the ball and the trainers wouldn't have to worry about potentially killing them while traveling. The Silph Co started mass-producing the items known as 'Poké Balls', but since they were real idiots at the time, they forgot that the Poké Ball design would need to be patented. The rival Devon Corporation patented the design first, and now, Silph Co has to pay royalties to Devon every time it makes a Poké Ball. Fortunately, Silph Co invented so many other products and expanded to Johto as well, so they still became rich, but not as rich as Devon."

"So, what does this lecture have to do with anything?" Shane asked.

"I'll tell you!" Kurt said. "In normal Poké Balls, the mechanism that converts the Pokémon into energy is contained in the external shell of the ball. In the GS Ball, the mechanism that reverts the Pokémon into energy is _inside _the ball. If that breaks down, the Pokémon inside will be killed."

"So, what, you're saying there's a Pokémon inside the GS Ball?" Shane asked.

"Uh, yeah, that's what I said!" Kurt said, impatient because of Shane's stupidity. "Try to listen, OK? Well, as you probably know already, my son, Dr. Gideon, has been working for Team Rocket. It seems that he was fired from Silph years ago, which is just ridiculous, considering how much I trusted him! Well, the Mask of Ice, Team Rocket's new leader, was the one that made the GS Ball. You see those gold and silver shells of the ball? The golden one is actually made from the feathers of Ho-Oh, while the silver shell is made from the feathers of Lugia!"

"You're kidding!"

"Nope! Only those feathers would be strong enough to contain the Pokémon that the Mask of Ice wanted to capture. It appears that he did so, but there's only one place where the ball could be opened. He was going to travel there himself, but decided to send it to me first. It was left anonymously, with just a note. I did as ordered, since there was money with the note: I built a mechanism which made sure that only he himself could open it. Of course, I had my doubts, so I made sure that I could bypass that mechanism. He also sent it to me in hopes that I would give it to some random trainers who would deliver it to Dr. Gideon, his henchman. That was in the note, too. Seeing as Dr. Gideon was my son, I had no doubts about sending it to him."

"And the random trainers were… me and Kris?" Shane asked.

"Well, duh!" Kurt said and rolled his eyes. "But just recently, I heard that Dr. Gideon was among those who took over the Radio Tower, and even worse, he had built a machine that would brainwash Pokémon everywhere!"

"But he was a Poké Ball expert!" Shane reasoned. "How the heck could he build a machine like that?"

"That's the most delicious part, you see…" Kurt said, overjoyed about having someone listen to his stories. "I believe that Gideon got the idea, as well as the blueprints to the machine, from the CEO of the Nintendu corporation!"

"That Nintendu again… who are they?"

"Lord only knows…" Kurt said. "But I think that-"

"AAAAAAARGH!"

Shane and Kurt flinched backwards when someone fell from a tree and landed face down right in front of them. The man was not discouraged by this, he simply stood up, and Shane could immediately recognize Fernando.

"Ha hah!" Fernando exclaimed. "The great Fernando has followed you all this time! You were talking about an artifact most expensive, and I have come to demand it for myself. Hand it over, or suffer the consequences."

"Well, what if we don't give it to you?" Shane asked, as he had confronted Fernando too often, so he wasn't really afraid of him.

"Well, then, I shall…" Fernando paused for a moment, trying to think of something to say.

"Listen, Mr. Fernando" Kurt said. "You probably don't know me, but I think I know where you are coming from. Where does this thievery and roughhousing stem from? Why do you speak in that melodramatic tone? Can it be traced to some childhood trauma?"

"I… I…" Fernando stuttered, and started crying. "Okay, I admit it! When it was four, my dad used to dress me up as a fairy and forced me to dance for his friends!"

Shane laughed at this pathetic outburst, only to get a dirty look from Kurt.

"And tell _me_ something, Shane" Kurt said. "You traveled here alone and you seem to lack all imaginable social skills… why? Has your desire to be accepted overcome you and caused you to become an introvert? Why are you so mean to people who wish to be friendly with you? Why?"

"I… shut up!" Shane said, turning away from Kurt. "What are you, a shrink or something?"

Kurt turned back to Fernando.

"Listen, if you're really strapped for cash, I can help you" Kurt said. "If you help me and Shane, I'll give you some money."

Fernando nodded and wiped his face so that his crying would be left unnoticed. Shane sighed, as he really didn't want Fernando hanging around with them, but this dysfunctional trio nevertheless waltzed into the Ilex Forest, Kurt leading the way. After wandering around the dark forest, Kurt finally found what he was looking for: a small, wooden structure, a shrine dedicated to the 'guardian of the forest'. Kurt glanced at Shane and the flashlight-wielding Fernando, then placed the GS Ball into the shrine; there was a slot that was seemingly carved just for that purpose.

Shane, Fernando and Kurt were all quiet, waiting anxiously. At first, nothing happened. Next, the GS Ball, and soon, the entire shrine started glowing, illuminating the dark forest almost completely. Slowly, the GS Ball opened, and something indeed busted out from the Poké Ball and appeared in front of the trio, floating in the air. The Pokémon was a green, fairy-like creature with wings on its back, large blue eyes and a pair of antennae.

"I knew it!" Kurt whispered in awe. "It's Celebi, the guardian of the forest!"

"Celebi, huh?" Shane said and grabbed his clipbook and camera from his bag. "You mean… like a legendary Pokémon?"

"This Pokémon _defines_ the term, 'Legendary Pokémon'. Very few have even existed, and most were rumored to be extinct by now. It has the power to restore plants at will, and most importantly, it can travel through time."

"Fascinating… a Pokémon like that would be quite valuable, then?" Fernando asked slyly.

"Its value cannot be measured…" Kurt stated. "It almost never shows itself to humans. This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, and- no, Shane, don't take a picture! You'll startle it!"

Shane was very displeased because of this, but had no choice but to put away the camera. For a few seconds, the trio merely admired Celebi, who itself looked quite confused as it sat down on the shrine, looking around, enjoying its newfound freedom. It emitted a light that kept illuminating the whole forest.

But suddenly, the light stopped glowing, and Ilex Forest became dark again. Celebi was still there, but someone had grabbed the GS Ball from the shrine. Shane, Fernando and Kurt turned to see a red-haired woman in a fancy jacket suit.

"Oh, my, what a lovely gift!" the woman said, admiring the GS Ball. "Thanks!"

"Who are you?"

"You mean you don't know me yet?" the woman asked. "And I thought I was famous all around Johto. I am Phyllis, and that's all you need to know. Now who might you be?"

"He's the _pendejo_ who foiled the plans of Team Rocket at the Slowpoke Well!" said a rough-voiced man standing behind Phyllis. "He's friends with that chick who messed your operation at the Radio Tower!"

"Oh, yes, you told me about him, Miguel" Phyllis said. "Nice to meet you, at last…"

The men behind Phyllis lit their flashlights, and Shane instantly recognized the card-carrying villain Miguel, accompanied by his ever-present thugs, José and Pepe.

"Cousin, I thought you stopped working for Team Rocket already!" Fernando said.

"Get with the times, Fernando!" Miguel said. "She pays me money, so I help her."

"Come on, cousin, you can help me out here, we're family!" Fernando pleaded. "I was supposed to get that Celebi, I need the money, I mean, I _really_ need the money!"

"Sorry, cousin, but that's what you get for screwing with me!" Miguel stated.

"Besides, this is not about Team Rocket!" Phyllis announced. "I am doing this strictly as a favor for the boss. He wants Celebi, and I'm going to deliver it to him in this ball!"

"Is the Mask of Ice your boss?" Shane asked.

"Wow, how clever of you!" Phyllis mocked, and signaled Miguel and his cronies to laugh, which they did, albeit unwillingly. "He wants Celebi, and I don't care why. I only care about the stuff he promised me. This Pokémon can travel back in time. I can go and change the past so that Giovanni will not lose to that Red guy. Giovanni will then lead Team Rocket to a new gold age, and I will be his first lady!"

"Hang on a second, I think I know who you are, Kris told me about you!" Shane said. "Aren't you married? To that Philip guy?"

"Philip? Hah! He's a loser!" Phyllis said. "Me and Dr. Gideon managed to place the blame entirely on him, and the prison they put us in basically had revolving doors anyway! I only care about Giovanni!"

"Interesting…" Kurt said. "Why do you have such an _unhealthy_ interest in Giovanni? You're relatively young, what, 25-26, maybe? From what I have heard, Giovanni is at least twenty years older. Do you think of him as a potential lover, or is he a paternal figure to you? Did your own parents neglect you, or-"

"That pop-psychology isn't working on me, old man!" Phyllis interrupted. "My business is my business. We can do this peacefully, and you can just watch as I take Celebi so that the Mask of Ice can use it for whatever he needs it for anyway, then take over the world and stuff like that. OK? Miguel, guys, here's the GS Ball. Throw it at that Celebi!"

"Throw this?" Miguel asked. "Hell, this is real gold and silver! This is probably worth thousands of whatevers!"

"Shut up and throw it!"

"We won't let you, right guys?" Fernando asked. "After all, if someone sells Celebi or the GS Ball on the black market, it shall be me and only me, and no one else!"

"Yeah!" Shane echoed and threw a Poké Ball on the ground.

But what he thought was Droid's Poké Ball, was actually the blue blob given to him by Professor Elm, Wobbuffet. Miguel, José and Pepe laughed at the pathetic Pokémon as it cheerfully announced its own name. Miguel called out his Hypno, and ordered it to use Psychic. Shane didn't know what attack to call out, but Wobbuffet actually seemed to know what to do itself: as the Psychic-attack approached Wobbuffet, it started glowing, bathing in bright blue light, deflecting the attack back towards Hypno and blasting it into the air. Everyone was amazed, and Fernando's interest in Wobbuffet was quite noticeable.

"Have it your way, then!" Phyllis said. "Gloom, go, use Stun Spore on all of them!"

Phyllis threw her Poké Ball into the air. Shane and Fernando didn't even have time to grab more Poké Balls and Wobbuffet just stood still as Gloom came out of its ball and prepared to use its paralyzing attack.

"Crobat, use Confuse Ray!"

All of the sudden, someone saved the situation, as Phyllis' Gloom was suddenly confused, and was unable to attack. Instead, it attacked and paralyzed itself. Phyllis was enraged, and Shane saw that their savior arrived from behind a tree. It was Silver, who finally had a Crobat.

"Wow, thanks!" Shane said. "You saved us!"

"I didn't do it for you!" Silver replied.

"Enough of this! Miguel, José, Pepe, go and teach those people a lesson!" Phyllis screamed whilst recalling her Gloom.

What could have evolved into a potentially thrilling Pokémon battle between these eight people, was suddenly interrupted, when Celebi decided that it had enough of this racket. It started glowing, illuminating the forest once again, and launched a powerful psychic attack against Miguel, José and Pepe who were running towards it. Instead, they were thrown backwards and knocked out when they hit a tree. Celebi then prepared to use its dimension-twisting powers, and opened a portal that would most likely lead to a completely different period of time. The portal sucked Phyllis into oblivion, with her screaming along the way. Celebi then prepared to enter the portal itself, and Silver, who stared wishfully at the portal, decided to go in as well.

"Silver, don't!" Shane shouted, but his voice was covered by the noised caused by the time portal.

Silver didn't hear Shane's warnings, and stepped into the time portal together with his Crobat, having nowhere else to go. The portal disappeared, and Shane, Fernando and Kurt disappeared from the forest as well, accompanied by a bright flash of white light.

All of the sudden, they found themselves standing in the middle of Azalea Town, without having any recollection of the events.

"…really strapped for cash, I can help you!" Kurt said. "…wow. What happened?"

Shane, Kurt and Fernando looked around them. While they didn't remember what had happened, they did feel that something was wrong, and they all had a strange sensation of déjà vu.

"I don't remember anything…" Shane said, holding his head like he had a major headache.

Noticeably, Wobbuffet was standing next to them. It looked just the same as usual, but Shane had a strange feeling that Wobbuffet knew something about the event. Fernando seemed to feel the same way too, as he kept looking at Wobbuffet.

"I do remember one thing!" Fernando said, pointing at Wobbuffet. "That Pokémon kicked ass! Can I have it, please?"

"No, I need to give it back to Professor Elm" Shane sighed. "But I remember that it was quite good as well… besides, if you want a good Pokémon, Professor Elm has a Mr. Mime that you can probably have."

"Really?" Fernando said. "That's great, because my own Pokémon are losers. Except for Ditto, of course. But do I need to trade it for something?"

"Elm is missing one Chikorita, you know" Shane suggested.

"And I have a Chikorita, which I basically don't need anyway, and it's practically freshly caught, and I have only used it, like, once! This is great!"

"Wow, I didn't know you were such a nice guy, Fernando!" Shane said. "You're giving away your Chikorita and making some kid in New Bark Town very happy, and you're also saving Professor Elm from some serious trouble."

"Hey, don't mention it!" Fernando said. "Seriously, people will think that I'm a softy or something…"

Fernando left town and started walking towards Azalea Town. Fernando suggested that Shane could give him the Wobbuffet and he could deliver it to Elm, but Shane didn't trust Fernando that much yet, and decided to send Wobbuffet back to Elm by using the PC. It seemed that Wobbuffet's strength was countering attacks, which would make it a potentially lethal Pokémon in battles. After Shane had sent back the Wobbuffet and gotten back his Starmie, Shane turned to Kurt.

"What really went on in there?" Shane asked.

"Hey, I don't know any better than you!" Kurt said. "The GS Ball seems to be gone, though, and I have my suspicions about it, but I'm not telling. It's best that we don't think about it."

"So, you're saying that actually _nothing_ happened during this chapter?" Shane asked. "This is BS! Screw you, Kurt, I'm going home!"

Shane started his loooooong journey towards Viridian City. It took him four days to get back, mostly because he kept losing his sense of direction. He had to eat the stuff he could find from the ground and from trash cans, but eventually made it back to his hometown. Even in his weakened state, Shane could notice a building in Viridian that he hadn't noticed before. While Shane was supposed to go back home and it was already dark outside, Shane was just too curious. He walked to the door of the new building, and read the sign:

"_'Viridian City Trainer House. We hold battles every day. Come test your strength, sucka! I pity the fool who doesn't come into the Trainer House, I do!'_"

Shane shrugged and entered the Trainer House, thinking that he could improve his battling skills. Shane talked to the receptionist, and was guided downstairs, where a randomly selected battle partner would soon appear. Shane waited for a few minutes, and then was greeted by his pair - Gold.

"No, not you!" Shane moaned.

"Oh, hello, there!" Gold said. "Shane, was it? Boy, you're in for a battle of a lifetime! Six-on-six, right? Let's go!"

**...**

While Shane took his time during the little scuffle with Team Rocket, Kris was completely unaware of this. She was hiking at Mt. Silver, desperately trying to get to the top, where the World Champion of Pokémon, Red, was supposedly waiting. Kris' clothes were dirty and torn, her hair was a mess, she was starving and tired, but something, perhaps pure obstinacy, kept Kris going.

Finally, she made it on her way to the top, and encountered the mystical Pokémon trainer everyone had talked about. Kris was surprised at how young the trainer was, probably not much older than her. His cap obscured his face and he wore relatively normal-looking clothing: a red jacket and blue jeans. Red didn't say a word, simply took out a Poké Ball and signaled Kris that he was ready to battle. Kris nodded, and grabbed a Poké Ball as well.

The battle between the Pokémon Champion and one stubborn trainer from Johto was ready to start. As the battle commenced, Kris didn't care whether she would win or lose. She had gotten to the point that she was about to battle the Champion himself. Even if she would lose against Red, she would have one heck of a story to tell. If she would win, well, that would be quite awesome. But she probably would lose. After a groin-grabbingly great battle, no less.

**...**

While Kris battled the silent Red, Shane was stuck in a battle against the loud-mouthed Gold, who wouldn't miss an opportunity to taunt Shane. After the battle had gone for an hour, both Shane and Gold were exhausted, and both were left with only one Pokémon. Gold had his starter and powerhouse, Typhlosion, while Shane had his Poliwrath, Swirly, the battle-eager water-type. While Shane had the type advantage, Poliwrath was severely weakened, as it was forced to battle against two of Gold's prior Pokémon, while Typhlosion was only just sent to the battlefield.

"Poliwrath, Water Gun!" Shane said, believing that this would instantly knock out Typhlosion.

"Typhlosion, dodge and use Rollout!"

Typhlosion curled up into a ball, enabling it to dodge the Water Gun, the rolled behind Poliwrath and hit it in the back.

"Now, use Flamethrower!" Gold shouted.

Before Shane could come up with an attack, Typhlosion stood up behind Poliwrath. Just as Swirly was about to turn, Typhlosion attacked it with Flamehtrower point-blank, doing some massive damage even though the attack was not very effective. Poliwrath suffered a burn, and since Shane didn't have any healing items with him, Poliwrath was weakened and knocked out. Gold won the match.

"Yes! Nice going there, Typhlosion!" Gold said and recalled his Pokémon. "Your Poliwrath is pretty good, Shane, but man, you suck as a trainer. You couldn't even defeat a fire-type with a water-type!"

Shane was annoyed by Gold's insult, but partially knew that Gold was right.

"Yeah, I guess so…" Shane said. "But damn it, Swirly wants to fight, and I'm not really into battling…"

"You're not into battling?" Gold asked and snickered at this. "What are you, gay or something?"

"Takes one to know one!" Shane snipped back. "And no, I'm not, I just don't like battling. If your brains weren't so messed up by steroids, you would get what I'm saying. It's just that Swirly seems to like battling, and I don't think he's too happy with me."

"Well, if you really care about Swirly, you'd give him to me!" Gold said. "No, seriously, people do that all the time, I saw in that one show, when the character was constantly giving away and leaving his Pokémon for no good reasons. Well, now you have a pretty good reason. How about it?"

Shane didn't really like the idea; he had raised Swirly since it was a tiny Poliwag. Besides, Swirly was his third Pokémon, and it had been very helpful. But, Shane wanted what was best for it, and he could use an open slot in his party, so Shane gave Swirly to Gold. Having realized why Kris hated Gold so much, Shane left the Trainer House and returned home. After all, there's no place like home, right?


	22. Sweet Home

**Chapter Twenty-two: **_**Sweet Home **_

Another not-so-amazing adventure was over, and Shane had returned home to Viridian City, without any knowledge of the fantastic incidents occurred to him, and furthermore, he wouldn't have realized what happened anyway. Despite getting some additions to his clipbook, Shane didn't really feel it substantiated for spending eight months traveling around two regions.

Now that he was home, he nevertheless enjoyed the company of his other Pokémon: Shrew, Zuba, Droid, Fredrik and Starmie. He did feel slightly bad for giving away Swirly, but he knew perfectly well that Swirly was happier with Gold, as it enjoyed fighting more anyway. He let his Pokémon roam freely at the back yard of his parents' house. Needless to say, his parents were not too keen on having an adult man spending so much time around the house, but they couldn't really think of a way to get him go away.

After three days had passed, Shane was completely apathetic; he didn't really think about anything. He just let his Pokémon play around as he lay motionless on the grass, watching the sky. This had gone for hours and hours.

Until all of the sudden, a smiling face suddenly popped into Shane's vision:

"Hi, Shane!"

At first, Shane was so scared that he nearly rolled down the hill before realizing that it was Kris who entered his line of sight.

"Kris! Jesus Christ! Sorry, you just startled me a bit… What are you doing here?"

"I got back from Mt. Silver!" she replied cheerfully and sat next to Shane. "What, did you think that I was just going back home and forget about everything? Please, this story, I mean, our lives, are far from over. I battled that former Champion, Red, back there. I can see why he was the Champion. He basically just ran over me, I had no chances against him."

"Wait, our lives?"

"Yeah" Kris said. "You and me. No, don't get any ideas. I mean you and me _as friends_. Nothing more. That said, I don't know where we should go. All I know is that I need some serious practice if I ever want to become a good trainer."

"I think you're already a good trainer" Shane said, and Kris couldn't help but to be flattered by this.

For a moment, these two young people just stared into the sky, watching the clouds and the Pidgey flying about… until Kris saw something important. In the distant horizon… an enormous flying, glittering Pokémon that seemed to appear in all the colors of the rainbow.

"Shane!" she shouted. "Look over there! No, over there! What is that?!"

"Hang on a second…" Shane said, and took a pair of binoculars from his 'Plot Convenience'-labeled backpack. Shane looked through the binoculars. For a moment, he didn't see anything, until he finally saw the same thing that Kris did and gasped.

"Oh, crikey!" he said, unable to say any actual swear words. "It's Ho-Oh!"

"Ho-Oh?" Kris repeated and grabbed the binoculars from Shane, almost strangling Shane in the process because of the neck strap. "Damn, you're right. It's Ho-Oh all right. It's gorgeous… I wonder where it's going…"

Kris let go of the binoculars and Shane was able to breath again. She stared intensely at Ho-Oh, and tried to figure out where it was going.

"It seems that it's heading, uh… southwest! I don't know what there is, though. Do you have a map?"

"Of course I do" Shane replied, and quickly took one out from his backpack. "Always be prepared, like I say. Here!"

Kris grabbed the map, folded it open and spread it on the ground. They were currently in Viridian City, Kanto. In the southwest, there were only some small islands, and… a large, water-dominated region called 'Hoenn'.

"The Hoenn region…" Kris said. "I've heard about it. The climate is warm and there's lots and lots of new Pokémon, new gyms, and most importantly, a new Pokémon League. What do you say, Shane? Should we go to Hoenn?"

"All the way to Hoenn? Sure, I guess. I'm sure my parents will pay for the ferry ride!"

"All right!" Kris said, got up and Shane followed suit. "Let's pack up and head there right now."

"Uh, sure… let's go!" Shane said and prepared to recall his Pokémon. "See you in Hoenn, bitches!"

"Why did you say that?"

"Well, for no particular reason. But I think it's OK to say it after the end of each arc. So, excuse me: **SEE YOU IN HOENN, BITCHES!**"


	23. Hoenn: The 80day challenge

**HOENN**

**Chapter Twenty-three: **_**Hoenn: The 80-day challenge**_

A story in the Hoenn region wouldn't be perfect without the introduction of more characters. Brendan was a young whippersnapper living in Petalburg City, Hoenn. He used to live in Littleroot Town, but complications involving his father's job at the gym forced him to move. Despite this, Brendan kept visiting his old hometown for a reason, and that reason was May.

May was a girl who was also starting her Pokémon journey, but without much enthusiasm. She wasn't really into battling, and truthfully, there were few Pokémon that she actually liked. Still, she wanted to go on a journey, hoping that she would make new friends, get new enemies and more experiences. Life in Littleroot Town was hopelessly boring. The only thing that kept May in Littleroot was the fact that her father, Professor Birch, refused to leave the place. It was ideal for his research due to the numerous Pokémon species living nearby. But today, February 1st, was the day when May and Brendan would both start their journeys.

Both May and Brendan went to visit Professor Birch together to get their starter Pokémon. They had a hard time choosing, but eventually May chose to take the chicken-resembling, fire-type Pokémon Torchic, while Brendan took the grass-type, Treecko. While Brendan knew about type advantages, he merely wanted to make things as challenging as possible. Birch could instantly see that Brendan was eager to show the skills he learned in trainer school, but most importantly, Professor Birch saw how close May and Brendan were, and wondered why the two of them hadn't gotten together yet.

Of course, whenever someone posed a question like to May and Brendan, they would immediately deny about having any serious relationship, and moreover, they would probably start insulting each other just to prove their point. Did they harbor feelings towards each other? Most likely, yes, but were they going to show it? Probably not. While they had so much history, being best friends since childhood and all that, their personalities were very different. Brendan was a borderline jerkass at times, being constantly being loud-mouthed and arrogant and ready to brag about his knowledge and skills. May had qualities like that too, but kept them on the down-low, and was mostly a modest, if not quiet and shy girl who was really reserved about his personal life, with Brendan being one of the few people she ever opened up to.

After acquiring their respective Pokémon, they discussed their upcoming future.

"So, do you have any plans for our trip yet?" Brendan asked.

"Nah, not really…" May said. "I don't really have plans for anything. I don't know what to do."

"That's your problem, then!" Brendan said smugly. "I know exactly what I'm doing: I'm going to beat every single gym leader in this region, enter the Pokémon League and possibly become a gym leader, like my dad. Maybe even more than that… Who knows, they might accept me into the Elite Four!"

"Well aren't you confident!" May taunted. "What if you _don't_ win?"

"That's not a possibility."

"Well, I'm glad you have something to keep you occupied, but what about me?"

"You don't have to be a trainer, though" Brendan reminded. "Recently, there's been a real contest craze going on. You should try those!"

"Pokémon Contests?" May asked. "Really? I always thought that those things were for spoiled rich girls… but I guess I could give them a try…"

"And you should!" Brendan said. "The nearest Contest Hall, is, I think… it's in Slateport City, isn't it?"

"That could be a nice challenge for me…" May pondered. "I need to get four ribbons so I can compete in the Grand Festival. Hey, if I win, I get to compete against the master coordinator, Wallace, himself."

"Sounds good! Maybe you and me could have a little bet while we're at it…" Brendan suggested. "You know, a challenge. Remember how Phileas Fogg made a bet that he circumnavigate the world in eighty days?"

"No, I don't."

"Well, he did anyway, I think. So, maybe we should issue a similar challenge. No, I'm not talking about going around the world, but a little challenge. I bet that I can gather eight badges and win the Pokémon League before you can gather the four ribbons and win the Grand Festival!"

"Done!" May said, without overthinking it. "Mind you, this is going to be quite easy for me."

"I wouldn't say so…" Brendan said. "After all, even if I lose, I can always have a rematch with the gym leader later on. But if you lose a contest, you basically have lost your chance. And there are six Contest Halls in the region, and you have to compete and win it at least four of them. Remember, you only get a ribbon by becoming _first_."

"Oh…" May said.

"Anyway, shake on it!"

Brendan grabbed May's hand and before May could say any objections, they shook hands to validate their bet.

"So, it is agreed. Our challenge needs to be completed at least before April 21st, OK?"

"Sure…" May said. "But… I don't know where to start, I don't know anything!"

"Well, you should have found out!" Brendan said. "Anyway, I'm off to Petalburg City, I'm going to see my dad and see if he wants to battle me, so I can get my first badge! Later!"

Brendan, who obviously took the 80-day-challenge seriously, rushed out from Littleroot Town, leaving May alone in Littleroot. After packing up her stuff carefully and making sure she hadn't forgotten everything, then repacking and again going through her stuff, she finally left town, deciding to head to Route 103 so she could get to Slateport City easily.

**...**

After a painstaking ferry ride from Pallet Town, Shane and Kris had finally arrived to Petalburg City, Hoenn, by using a ferry. The town was nice, but quite small and too boring for any long-term stay. To get matters done quickly, Shane and Kris decided to leave the city as soon as possible and head to Rustboro City, the next larger city, separated from Petalburg by Route 104 and the dark and dangerous Petalburg Woods. As soon as Shane and Kris stepped on dry land again, they saw a man in a lab coat running towards them.

"Oh, great…" Shane thought. "Scientologists…"

The man, obviously out of breath, stopped in front of Shane and Kris to catch his breath, panting and holding his chest.

"Oh, man…" he panted. "I'm too old for this. You two, listen… did you see a young lady walk past here, about your age, with brown hair, a red bandanna and red clothes and black shorts, really whiny..."

"Nah, haven't seen one" Shane replied. "But good luck with your search!"

"Hey, aren't you Professor Birch?" Kris asked.

"Yes…" Birch replied, slowly starting to breath normally again. "I'm the resident professor in Hoenn, and that girl I asked you about, May, is my daughter. I wanted to warn her about some crooks who I just heard about from the news."

"Who?"

"Well, nothing too serious, I hope, but you never know. There are these two criminal 'teams', one called Team Magma and the other called Team Aqua. I don't know what they're about, but I'm rather worried that May might run into them. I know she's all grown up and everything, but still… hey, on a completely unrelated subject: are you Pokémon trainers?"

"Well, I am anyway, he is…" Kris said, but had no idea what to call Shane. "He's just something, I guess."

"It's good to be something!" Shane announced.

"Yeah, well, anyway, people who have too many Pokémon usually send them to my lab" Birch said. "So, I need some strong Pokémon there to control all those out-of-control Pokémon. I can't do it alone with my assistant, I've got other work to do. So, do you have any strong ones?"

"I have one!" Shane said. "My Heracross, I mean. I only used it a couple of times, so it's not really that important anyway. On the other hand, it could have had the potential to kick some ass later…"

"Hey, I'm just asking to borrow it for a while" Birch said. "You can get it back later, when I have captured a new Pokémon for a substitute. Besides, you should give the Pokémon of Hoenn a chance. You need open slots for something. And hey, I can you substitute it for something. So, I heard you like Mudkipz?"

"What?"

"Get it? It's a joke!"

"No, I don't get it" Shane said. "But if it's some sort of retarded internet meme, then please, I'm asking you, don't say it ever again. Ever."

"All right, fair enough, but I have a leftover Pokémon that you could use during your trip in Hoenn. Who knows, maybe you'll learn about new attacks… and stuff. How about it, you lend me your Heracross, I give you a Mudkip in return."

"OK, but this Mudkip needs to be good, I'm not giving away anymore Pokémon!" Shane said. "That's only for losers who use Pikachu or some other lame Pokémon like that."

Birch nodded and gave Shane a Poké Ball containing the Mudkip, while he took Heracross' Poké Ball from Shane. After saying goodbye, Birch left, telling Shane and Kris to come visit his lab later on. Deciding to continue their journey, Shane and Kris tried to leave Petalburg City as soon as possible, and decided that they wouldn't stop despite any distractions.

Just as they started walking, a potential distraction walked right up to them in the form of a young, small, skinny and frail-looking boy, who started talking to Shane and Kris:

"Um, excuse me, m-my name is Wally, a-and I'd like to have a P-pokémon, please-"

"Get out of the way, kid!" Shane said and pushed the kid to the ground.

Surprisingly enough, this rude act didn't coin any objections from Kris, so the duo continued. They were just about to arrive to the outskirts of Petalburg City and continue on to Route 104, when-

"Hey!

"Oh, great, who is it now?"

Shane and Kris turned to see a familiar face and a similarly familiar Dragonite, standing near a pond. It was Lance, who had somehow found his way to Hoenn, and had stopped in Petalburg City so his Dragonite could have a drink. Ignoring the disgusting slurping sounds made by the Dragonite as it drank the water, Shane and Kris started chatting with Lance, as he was important enough.

"Hi, Lance!" Kris greeted. "What are you doing here?"

"In Hoenn?" Lance said. "Well, this was supposed to be secret, but the Legendary Society isn't good at keeping secrets, so-"

"Oh, so it's an LS-related job, huh?" Shane asked.

Lance sighed.

"Yes, it is" he said. "Just listen, please. I don't know if you have heard about these criminal organizations called Team Magma and Team Aqua-"

"Yeah, we have, but we hear that they're just small-time crooks" Kris said.

"Well, they're a bit more than that" Lance said. "As far as organized crime goes, these guys are probably just as threatening as Team Rocket during their glory days, maybe even more so. The reason I'm here because I had a strong hint that those two criminal organizations are both after a legendary Pokémon called Jirachi."

Lance took out a picture of the said Pokémon and showed it to Shane and Kris. The picture seemed to be merely an artists interpretation of Jirachi: it was a very small, disgustingly over-cutesy Pokémon with a headdress resembling a yellow star. Kris was quite disinterested, but Shane couldn't take his eyes off the photo, not because of Jirachi itself, but merely because it was a picture of a legendary.

"That looks quite harmless, legendary or not" Kris said. "Why do those criminals want it anyway?"

"Yeah, and can I keep this?" Shane asked, referring to the picture.

"Sure, keep it" Lance said, much to Shane's pleasure. "And yes, it doesn't seem to be much, but it is rumored that Jirachi has the power to make wishes come true. I'm not sure whether that is true or not, but it's the principles that make my mission important: some criminals are trying to kidnap a Pokémon and force it to work for them. What is even more worrying is that those two teams have rather… _concerning_ goals."

"What kind of goals?"

"I'm glad you asked, Kris, because otherwise, I wouldn't have been able to continue my sentence. Anyway, for some reason, Team Magma wants to expand the world's landmass, while Team Aqua wants to, yes, you guessed it right: expand the oceans."

"But why?" Kris asked. "That just sounds so stupid. What's the point of expanding the landmass or the oceans?"

"Hey, I don't know, and I don't really care" Lance said. "Those people are crazy, and even though their plans don't make any sense at all and they seem like villains from some low-budget games, there are still chances that they might succeed. And if they do, then that's not a very good thing. I have suspicion that they are trying to use Jirachi for their goals. So, they sent me to stop them. And now, to the big question I've been meaning to ask. Kris, you seem to be a rather competent trainer. Will you join me? In taking out these teams, I mean."

"Nah, I don't know, I'm really here just for the gyms" Kris replied.

Shane, irritated and confused because Kris was asked, wanted to signify his presence by coughing quite loudly. Lance noticed this, but merely shook his head.

"Yes, I know that you want to be a part of the Society's actions" Lance said, trying to sound as polite and official as possible. "But I'm afraid that you're not exactly what we're looking for, so…"

"Come on, _**please!**_" Shane moaned. "I swear, I'm much more useful than you think. For the last eight months or something, it has been my fondest wish to be accepted into the Legendary Society, so please, please, please, please even consider taking me with you. Please!"

Lance sighed and contemplated for a moment. Shane was quiet, not wanting to annoy Lance any further, and finally, Lance seemed to have made his mind.

"I guess I'm going to regret this, but… come with me. For a while, you shall be a 'Trainee Member' of the Legendary Society. Here's a badge!"

Lance gave Shane a similar badge that he himself had as well. Shane's hands were shaking as he took the badge and admired it. The badge was just as Shane remembered: it looked like a pitch-black police badge with the letters 'LS' written on it in yellow. Best of all, nothing seemed to indicate that it was merely a 'trainee badge'.

"Just, you know, don't go flashing that around too much. If you have to be alone for some reason, remember to add that you're a trainee or something" Lance reminded.

"Yeah, sure, whatever!" Shane said, although he wasn't really listening: he was too focused on admiring his new badge.

"When this is over with, I'll see how well you have fared. If you have done well, I'll recommend you to Mr. Gent" Lance said. "Yes, he already told me about his encounter with you. Now, come on, we need to go. Some Team Magma grunts have been sighted at the Meteor Falls."

Shane was brought back to earth, and he placed the trainee badge into his pocket. He suddenly remembered that Kris was with him too, and this time, he didn't want to just leave her alone.

"Uh, Kris" Shane said apologetically. "I know we were supposed to go through this together, but-"

"Yeah, I know" Kris said. "But listen, I'd be a real hypocrite if I would forbid you to go. It's OK. Do what your heart desires, or something like that. I'm sure we will see each other again."

"You have my word on that!" Shane said, although Kris had never really trusted Shane's word. "I'LL be BACK, as Guybrush Threepwood would say."

Lance hopped on his Dragonite, and Shane slowly ascended on the magnificent Pokémon as well, positioning himself behind Lance. He grabbed Dragonite's scales, not wanting to hold Lance, as it would seem too weird. Kris waved goodbye to Shane, but Shane didn't even seem to notice that. Dragonite jumped into the air and rocketed into the sky once again, with Shane screaming in fear all the way. Kris tried to laugh at this, but she was unable to do so. Once again, she was alone. But maybe things were meant to be that way. Kris shrugged and started walking towards the Petalburg Woods.

At least she wouldn't have to deal with smug and stupid guys again. Or so she thought…


	24. Villain of the week

**Chapter Twenty-four: **_**Villain of the week **_

Kris was navigating her way through the Petalburg Woods. The forest in question was a damp, dark and depressing place, filled with Pokémon that Kris had never heard of before, like Wurmple, Nincada and Shroomish. Thankfully, the forest was mostly free from other people, so Kris could walk in peace without disturbance. Despite the ugliness of the Petalburg Woods, Kris still enjoyed the scenery, as there wasn't a constantly yammering person next to her. After walking for a while, Kris encountered a nerdy looking man walking back and forth in the forest, muttering to himself and writing something to his notepad. Since there was no way to go around him, Kris decided to say hello:

"Hello!"

"Oh, hello there" the man said, not taking his eyes off the notepad. "Sorry, I don't have time to chat, whoever you are, I need to take notes here. I'm looking for a Pokémon called Shroomish, and-"

"Oi!"

The man was interrupted by another man emerging from the bushes and looking quite hostile. This man was wearing a recognizable and eccentric red devil outfit, consisting of a red shirt with a flame emblem on it, red boots, a red hood and black pants, apparently some kind of uniform. The man in the uniform approached the nerdy man, who screamed and took cover behind Kris.

"Oh no, it's a Team Magma member!" the nerdy man screamed.

"You're that Devon employee, aren't you!" the Magma Grunt said. "Oi, stop hiding behind that skirt and hand me that package you were carrying! Or else…"

"What did you call me?" Kris said angrily. "Besides, I don't even wear a skirt! And you, stop hiding behind me, you cretin. What are you, a coward?"

"Yes, I'm a coward! I want my mommy!"

"Hey, take it easy, okay?" the Magma Grunt said and grinned. "If you decide to defend this slimeball, fine by me. But perhaps you'd like to have a Pokémon battle first. Huh?"

"Well, sure, I thought that you wanted to solve this by using fists or something" Kris said and grabbed a Poké Ball. "You're on! Butterfree, go!"

"Poochyena, and you, Poochyena 2, go!"

With blatant disregard for the rules, the Magma Grunt threw two Poké Balls to the ground, with two black, dog-like Pokémon popping out of the balls, barking at Kris' Butterfree.

"Hey, who told you that this was a double battle?" Kris asked.

"No one, but hey, I'm the bad guy, did you except that I was going to go by the rules. I just want that package. Unlike you, I can handle two Pokémon at a time. Either tell that wimp behind you that fork over the Devon Goods or suffer the consequences!"

"Why does everyone always say 'suffer the consequences'?"

Kris was about to order an attack, but her voice was muffled by someone announcing his own arrival from the bushes.

"Never fear, my lady, because the incredible Brendan is here! Zigzagoon, go, use Headbutt!"

A Pokémon resembling a small, brown raccoon emerged from the bushes, attacking the other Poochyena, almost knocking it out. This distraction allowed Kris to tell Butterfree to use Stun Spore at both of the Poochyena, paralyzing them. When they were unable to attack, Kris was about to order a Mega Drain, but the Zigzagoon's trainer interrupted her again, telling his Pokémon to use Tackle at both of the Poochyenas, knocking both out. The Magma Grunt was displeased, and was forced to recall his two Poochyena and escape.

The Zigzagoon's trainer then emerged from the bushes and recalled his Pokémon. The trainer had white hair and a red bandanna, and otherwise had a red tracksuit, which made him look like he jogged everywhere he went.

"Ha haa!" the trainer exclaimed. "Did you see that, huh? Did you see me taking care of that bad guy?"

"You?" Kris asked in disbelief as she recalled Butterfree. "My Butterfree paralyzed them, you wouldn't have even been able to attack if it wasn't for me. But, uh, you did help me out, so… thanks."

"Not a problem, after all, the Brendan always helps the ladies" the trainer said smugly.

"OK, so you're Brendan, I got that" Kris deadpanned. "I'm Kris. It's, uh, a _pleasure_ to meet you."

"Likewise, I'm sure" Brendan said and tried to kiss Kris' hand, but Kris pulled her hand away. Brendan shrugged at this and spoke to the Devon employee next: "Don't worry, old man, I'm sure that after the treatment I gave to that guy, he won't be bothering you again."

"Thank you, good sir" the Devon employee said and hugged Brendan. "I need to get back to work, but please, come meet me at the Devon Corporation's offices in Rustboro City, please, I'm sure our president, Mr. Stone would love to meet you!"

After the Devon employee left, Kris tried to leave as well, but Brendan kept talking at her:

"So, anyway, don't get too carried away, little girl. Hey, I'm kind of a beginner as well, although I recently got my second Pokémon, Zigzagoon, so I think I'm doing pretty good for myself so far. I'm getting my first badge soon!"

"Oh, good for you" Kris remarked. "I have already competed in the Pokémon League, at the Silver Conference, and I also have about sixteen badges already."

This seemed to be effective in shutting Brendan up, but as Kris started walking towards Rustboro, Brendan didn't seem to just stop bothering her.

"Oh, but that's great!" he said. "I mean, I'm pretty good already, so I don't need to prove my worth with badges, but the Pokémon League demands it, so-"

"Listen, I just got rid of one guy with a massive ego" Kris said. "I don't need someone around me just so they could increase their self-esteem at my face."

"Yeah, but I'll come with you anyway, I can see that you're not from Hoenn, judging by your Pokémon, so you need a guide, right?"

"Like I said, I'd prefer to go alone" Kris snarked, biting her teeth together.

"Wow, Kris, you are a real blast!" Brendan laughed. "But anyway, I can see that your lips say 'no', but your eyes say 'oh yes', so I'll join you. I don't really need anyone traveling with me, but I'll allow you to come with me, OK?"

Kris desperately tried to stop herself from screaming directly at Brendan's face, but on the other hand, Brendan had a point: she could use a guide to show her around the Hoenn region. But she was unsure on how long she would be able to withstand Brendan's company. Sure, he wasn't that much more annoying than Shane, but at least Shane had an amount of modesty and humor in him: Brendan was just an arrogant jerk. As they traveled through Rustboro City, Brendan bragged about his obviously nonexistent achievements and kept mentioning that his father was a gym leader. Kris liked to bring Brendan down by constantly reminding him that she had sixteen badges, while he had none. For a beginner trainer, Brendan sure was confident about his abilities as a trainer. Only time would tell…

In Rustboro City, the first priority of Kris and Brendan was to visit the Devon Corporation's offices. The nerdy employee that they helped out in the forest was ready for them at the door, and happily greeted the duo. He then took Kris and Brendan all the way to the highest floor of the Devon office, to the office of the president, Mr. Stone himself. Apparently, Mr. Stone was an avid collector of rare rocks and gems, as they were kept on display in his office. It seemed that Mr. Stone wasn't particularly busy either: he was merely drinking coffee and playing Bejeweled in his office whilst his employees worked their fingers to the bone downstairs. He greeted Kris and Brendan quite jovially when they stepped in.

"Welcome, my friends, and thank you for helping out Devon Corporation!" Mr. Stone said, while shaking hands with Kris and Brendan. "Uh, John, shouldn't you get back to work? You're wasting valuable work time!" Mr. Stone added to the nerdy employee, who promptly bowed to his employer and rushed downstairs. "Now, then. My gratitude knows no limits. Please, sit down, I know I will. Cigar? No? Well, more for me, then. As I was saying, I could probably offer you a million whatevers as a reward for saying the products of our company-"

Brendan and Kris nearly jumped into the air on their chairs out of excitement, only to be brought down by Mr. Stone's next remark:

"-but I won't, because I know money is just too cold and unfriendly to you, noble heroes. I'm offering you… free PokéNavs, one per person. That little gizmo is great, it's a navigator, like a GPS or something, and it also has, uh… additional features… well, look it up! There's a manual. OK, now that I have given you these free gifts… and oh, remember to show them to your friends and tell them to get theirs at the closest Devon store! Anyway, now that you had such expensive gifts from me, I have a favor to ask. The Devon Goods that you helped to protect were actually expensive items and whatnot ordered by the Slateport City Boatyard. I don't really trust the post office and Team Magma might be stalking our delivery crew, so could you possibly deliver the package for Captain Stern at the Slateport City Boatyard?"

"Well-"

"Thanks, I knew you would be up to it!" Mr. Stone said, as if he was expecting a positive response. "Also, since you probably need to go through Dewford Town, take this too."

Besides the Devon Goods package, Mr. Stone also gave Kris a letter.

"It's a very, very important letter, and - don't open it, for Christ's sake! Anyway, it's a very important letter for my son Steven. I'm getting old, you see, and he's the only heir I have. Well, the only _male _heir, but as we all know, women can't run companies anyway, hah! I make myself laugh… Anyway, even though he is the only heir I would choose to run this company, but for some reason, he doesn't want to become CEO of Devon! Ever! Can you believe that? He must be an idiot. I mean, who doesn't like money? I sure do, heh! Uh, yeah, but I'm rambling again… this letter will show Steven the reasons for joining the Devon family. Take this to him. He's currently at Dewford Town, most likely searching for rare rocks at the Granite Cave."

"You got it, Mr. Stone, we'll do it!" Brendan said enthusiastically. "Right, Kris?"

"Right…" Kris replied with much less enthusiasm. "Mind you, Mr. Stone, some financial support would be nice…"

"Sorry, I'm a bit strapped for cash right now" Mr. Stone said and used a hundred whatever bill to light another cigar.

But before Kris and Brendan were going anywhere, they were both intent on challenging Roxanne, the gym leader of Rustboro City. Judging by the decoration of the gym and the rock-related puns made by the townspeople, Roxanne was a rock-type gym leader. She was also the prime student of the Rustboro Trainer Academy, which made her a rather competent gym leader, young or not.

Kris faced her first, and since Kris thought that she could beat Roxanne quite easily, she used her Misdreavus. Roxanne, however, used her Nosepass, which was a Pokémon unlike Kris had ever seen before, a very ugly, rock-type Pokémon with a humongous nose. It could withstand all Misdreavus' attacks without even flinching, and by using Rock Tomb a few times, Misdreavus was knocked out and Kris lost the match, much to her dismay.

Next, it was Brendan's turn to face Roxanne. Brendan didn't seem to think for a second that he could lose, and sent out her Treecko to the arena. Roxanne was quite knowledgeable about Pokémon and knew that Treecko's Grass-type attacks like Absorb and Bullet Seed would do significant damage, so it told Nosepass to use Harden repeatedly in order to survive the attacks. But despite this, Brendan emerged victorious when his Treecko did not only defeat the Nosepass, but in the process, it evolved into a Grovyle, and Kris was stunned by this: Brendan got his first badge strikingly easily, and his Pokémon already evolved at this point, while it took Kris several weeks to make Totodile evolve.

But there was no point in wallowing in self-pity. Kris attempted to challenge Roxanne again, but she was told that a challenger gets to try winning a gym badge only once a day. Since Brendan was already on his way to Dewford Town with the letter and the Devon Goods, Kris had no choice but to follow him and forget about the Stone Badge and continue her trip.

Kris and Brendan received a lift from Mr. Briney, a nice old man living in a secluded cabin at Route 104. When Kris accidentally stopped Briney's Wingull, Peeko, from escaping, Briney immediately thought that this was intentional or something, because he graciously agreed to take Kris and Brendan to Dewford Town by using his boat.

After a short boat ride, Kris and Brendan agree to Dewford Town. This was only a good thing for Kris, because throughout the boat ride, she had to listen to Brendan's bragging on how he was good enough to get a Stone Badge while Kris wasn't. Kris reminded Brendan that if she would have used her Feraligatr, she would have easily won the badge, but was unable to answer when Brendan asked her why she didn't use it. Perhaps because her other Pokémon needed training as well, or maybe Kris had the urge to show Brendan that she could defeat an opponent even without using the most powerful Pokémon…

In any case, Dewford Town didn't really please Kris. After all, Kris was more excited about culturally rich or just simply large towns, while Dewford Town was a small, isolated and boring place. The only place apparently worth visiting was the Granite Cave, a dark cave in the north where Steven supposedly was hanging around. Of course, there was no way to actually know whether or not Steven was still there, but considering that the story couldn't advance without him, he had to be there.

But Kris and Brendan weren't the only ones about to visit the Granite Cave: the whole place was swarming with strange people in blue, pirate-like outfits. They were commandeered by a tall woman who wore a similar outfit as the rest of the, but was more recognizable as she had long, red hair and also had a blue vest that had Poké Balls hanging from it. Whatever those people were doing, it probably wasn't anything productive: they were planting something that looked like explosives around the Granite Cave and threw nets at the water for seemingly no reason. Kris had her doubts about them, but Brendan had no reservations about walking up to the tall woman that seemed to be the boss around there.

"Tabitha, plant that one at the entrance, yes, over there! Move!" the woman shouted at a displeased-looking man who was forced to carry around a heavy bomb. "And who are you?" she asked upon seeing Brendan.

"Uh, hello there, miss" Brendan said and tried to shake hands with the lady, but failed. "I was just walking around with my friend here, and we were just wondering… what are you doing here?"

"Yeah, hi there, my name is Shelly, here's my card" the woman said and pushed Brendan away. "Now please, go away, I'm busy! Actually, there is one thing you can do…"

Shelly took a switch from her pocket and handed it to Brendan. It was a very simple thing that looked like a portable lightswitch, with the label 'Manufactured by the Nintendu Corporation' on it.

"What's this for?"

"Well, all the explosives are in place…" Shelly explained. "I need to supervise this whole thing, so I will start the countdown from ten. When I reach zero, press that switch to toggle the explosives. We're doing, uh… construction. Anyway, that Nintendu insta-switch can be found from your nearest store, and it can be your for only 199,99. All you have to do to blow up the bombs is to turn it on, select 'Login', enter the 18-number digit known as the 'friend code', toggle into the net, wait for the machine to pick up the updates, then choose the 'Blow up stuff' icon and choose 'Yes, I want to blow it up', and after that, you choose 'Yes, I am sure', and after that 'Yes, for the love of God, I am sure!'. And _then_ you can blow up the bombs!"

"Doesn't seem too hard…"

"Yeah, except that it only works 50% of the time, but anyway, when I reach zero, do what I said, OK?"

Brendan nodded. Kris monitored the situation from afar, and realized that the group was going to blow up the Granite Cave, which would be potentially unhealthy for the people inside.

"Hey, wait a minute!" Kris shouted. "Aren't there people inside the cave?"

"Don't worry, everyone has been evacuated" Shelly informed. "Tabitha, get away from the bombs, for Christ's sake! OK, you, kid with the switch. I'm starting the countdown. Clear out, everyone! _Ten, nine, eight, seven, six, five, four, three_… Tabitha, not there, you'll be killed, to the other side! _Two, one, ZERO!_"

Brendan did as ordered, going through the unnecessarily difficult process to toggle the bombs. After Brendan gave the switch a few smacks, it finally started working, and all the bombs detonated, one after another. Kris, concerned about the whole issue, covered hear ears and watched nervously as the bombs caused the Granite Cave to collapse, until only a pile of rocks remained.

"YEAH! WE DID IT!" Shelly screamed, and the rest of the blue-uniformed grunts also rejoiced. "And now, for the best part!" she continued as she turned to face Brendan and Kris, along with the others. "In case you didn't realize, we're actually members of Team Aqua. Our leader told us to blow up the Granite Cave because a potentially harmful individual was supposed to be there. Of course, we wanted to get rid of him. Hah! Next, we'll be getting rid of you!"

"Brendan, you idiot!" Kris scolded. "You just helped the bad guys!"

"Well, you didn't give me any warning either! Oh, crap, does this mean that that Steven guy is dead now?"

"The reports of my death are greatly exaggerated!"

The latter was announced by a man wearing a fancy black suit and a red scarf, with rather flamboyant silver-colored hair. The man was tall, but not very masculine or anything like that. As such, it was quite surprising that Kris, unlike ever before, behaved in a totally out-of-character manner when he glanced at the man like she had a crush on him or something, being unable to take her eyes off him. This, of course, made Brendan extremely jealous, and Brendan immediately started disliking the man, whoever it was.

"You're Steven?" Shelly asked. "Damn it, you were supposed to be inside that cave!"

"So you could crush me under the rocks?" Steven asked in turn. "No thanks. I know you, Shelly, you and the rest of you Team Aqua scum. You're not up to anything good, so please, get out of Dewford Town."

"Who's going to make us?"

"I am" Steven replied calmly and pulled out a Poké Ball.

Thanks to his lightning-fast reflexes, Steven was able to pull out a Poké Ball that he then threw into the ground. The Pokémon that popped out was a large, bipedal, steel-plated Pokémon that emitted a powerful roar, and was otherwise just a very intimidating sight.

"Aggron, Earthquake" Steven commanded his Pokémon.

Shelly or any of the Team Aqua grunts could barely react: Steven's Aggron stomped on the ground and caused an immense earthquake that caused several Aqua grunts to fall on the ground or into the water.

"Aggron, Hyper Beam!"

Next, the Pokémon opened its mouth and launched a destructive beam towards the Aqua Grunts. Aggron's Hyper Beam was powerful enough to send Shelly and the Aquas flying into the air, causing them to plummet into the ocean. The remaining grunts simply fled, choosing swimming over confronting Steven. Before the group knew it, the "battle" was over.

"Wow, that was amazing!" Kris said, fawning over Steven, who didn't seem to pay much attention to Kris.

"Nah, it was no big deal" Steven replied, without even looking at her. "I have been up against those guys various times. They keep trying to kill me, for… well, for some reason."

Brendan rolled his eyes and tried to signal Kris to follow him, but Kris wouldn't leave. Instead, she waved at Brendan to give Steven the letter they were supposed to deliver.

"Oh yeah, you're Steven Stone" Brendan said with intense disinterest. "Uh, your dad told us to deliver you a letter or something…"

Brendan rudely passed the letter to Steven, and Steven, who didn't bother to read it, placed it into his pocket instead. Again, he didn't seem to even notice that Kris kept staring at him.

"Thanks, I think I know what it's about, so I'll read it later" Steven said. "Now, I hope that there's something I could give you in turn, but unfortunately, I don't have anything worth giving right now."

"Well, that's OK, we need to get to the gym anyway…" Brendan said. "Come on, Kris!"

"No, no, I feel obliged to give something… well, here, take two hundred whatevers, per person. That should get you to a ferry ride to Slateport City-"

"No, thanks!" Brendan said. "We already have someone who agreed to give us a lift there!"

"Oh, well, take the money anyway, you might need them in the future. Now, excuse me, I have some work to do. Can I just get your names, in case we meet again?"

"I'm Kris!" Kris said immediately. "And, this is, uh… Brendan. Thanks, and please, give us a call, write us, or something…"

"We'll see. See you later, Kris and Brendan."

Steven calmly walked away, and Kris kept staring at him even long after he had disappeared from sight. Brendan, on the other hand, found the guy annoying and repulsive, even though he had just met Steven.

"Wasn't he great?" Kris asked.

"If by 'great', you mean 'douche', then yes, he was like that, wasn't he" Brendan quipped. "Now come on, I've got an itch to battle, and Brawly, the local gym leader is probably anxious to meet a good trainer like me. Come on, seriously, I'm in a hurry!"

"Hurry? I don't get it, what's the rush?"

"I, uh… well, it's personal, OK?"

"Sure…"


	25. Hot Lava

**Chapter Twenty-five: **_**Hot Lava**_

Captain's log, February 4th**: **_"I've really been slacking with my journal. But it is great, though, maybe I could offer it to a publisher and have it published as a book. It could be something like 'The Adventures of Shane, featuring Lance' or something catchy like that. Anyway, me and Lance are doing great. Well, I am, anyway. For some reason, Lance doesn't talk to me too much. I guess my greatness is just intimidating him. We're spending our nights in fabulous hotels and we're eating the best food. And best yet, we're not driving a car: we're flying on a freaking Dragonite! Can you believe that? I bet you can't! Anyway, I-_"

"Crap, I lost my pen! Well, that's what happens when I'm trying to write whilst riding a Dragonite. I'm sure everyone knows that…"

"Shane, are you listening?" Lance said. "I'm talking to you!"

Shane and Lance were currently flying over the central part of Hoenn, as they had just flown over Mauville City and were approaching Lavaridge Town. As of yet, they hadn't encountered any members of Team Magma or Team Aqua, but Lance had said that he had a sneaking suspicion about where to find them. As they approached their destination, Mt. Chimney, Lance felt appropriate to have some chit-chat with Shane, possibly to break the awkward silence.

"So…" Lance said. "What's the situation between you and that girl, Kris?"

"I'm not so sure…" Shane pondered. "She seems to have an invisible touch, yeah, she has reached in and grabbed right hold of my heart…"

"Wait, isn't that a song or something?"

"Who could say, after all, this is the land of confusion, and oh, think twice, because this is another day for you and me in paradise…"

"Whatever. I can't talk to you" Lance said and continue yelling directions to Dragonite.

Shane had just added a new Pokémon to his roster. He had also named his Mudkip 'Meme' unsurprisingly enough, and he also caught a Tropius, mostly for transportation as encouraged by Lance. After a few minutes of flying, Lance and Shane finally arrived to their destination: Mt. Chimney, an active volcano just east from Lavaridge Town. Lance and Shane could see the situation from air: shady men in red uniforms, who had blocked the Cable Car leading to Lavaridge Town and otherwise isolated Mt. Chimney from the rest of the world. Since Lance and Shane had the surprise element, Lance ordered Dragonite to attack from air. Shane held on tight from Dragonite's scales as it descended towards Mt. Chimney, and launched a Dragon Pulse directly at two Magma Grunts, who ran away when their clothes spontaneously combusted.

"Gee, was lighting them on fire really necessary?" Shane asked after they descended.

"Who cares?" Lance said. "They're the bad guys, after all. Besides, if they're really planning on what I think they're planning, then they deserve it. Come on!"

Lance and Shane climbed Mt. Chimney higher, until they reached the edge of the crater. Obviously enough, Mt. Chimney had erupted recently: smoke was pouring from the volcano, and the lava inside kept bubbling and hissing. The ashes that came down from the sky like snow were also noticeable. The ashes got in Shane's eyes, ears and mouth, which prompted him to whine some more:

"Eww! I've got ashes in my eyelashes!"

"Shut up! They can hear us!"

But Shane's stupid outburst already attracted the interest of a large amount of Team Magma grunts. One of the Magma members, apparently an Admin, a rough-voiced and rough-looking man called Tabitha approached Shane and Lance.

"Well, well… how did you get here?" Tabitha asked.

"Aerially. You guys really need to boost up your defenses!" Shane said.

"What are you doing here? Are you trying to make this volcano erupt or something?" Lance inquired.

"Hell if I know, I just work here" Tabitha said. "But our leader has already been effective. He stole a meteorite from Professor Gizmo, and we placed the meteorite into a machine that will make the volcano erupt. The boss is just ahead, if you think you can reach him. Of course, you will have to go through me first!"

Tabitha sent out his Pokémon, a Mightyena, Poochyena's evolved, more ferocious form. Lance ran towards the crater, but when apprehended by the Magma Grunts, ordered Dragonite to 'clear the way' by telling it to use Dragon Rage directly at the grunts. Shane was quite surprised by this violence that Lance expressed, but his mind was focused on something else: apparently, he had to battle Tabitha.

"OK, then… Meme, go!"

Shane called out his Mudkip, which hadn't gotten much action yet, but Shane was sure that it had a chance. When Tabitha ordered Mightyena to use Take Down, Shane was quicker and managed to tell Mudkip to dodge, then use Water Gun. It hit the target, but it was not enough to knock Mightyena out. Thankfully, Meme was faster than Tabitha's Mightyena, and it was able to dodge most of Mightyena's attacks. Finally, Meme took Mightyena down by using Bide to absorb Mightyena's attacks, then strike back the damage, knocking Mightyena out.

"Hah!" Shane laughed and recalled Meme. "I beat your Pokémon! Suck on it! What are you going to do now, huh? Huh?"

Tabitha recalled Mightyena and promptly punched Shane in the nose, knocking him out briefly as well. Just then, Tabitha's cell phone rang, and when Tabitha answered it, he spoke in a soft, quiet voice to avoid the other Magmas, who were battling Lance's Dragonite, from hearing it.

"Yes, hello, Archie…" Tabitha whispered. "No, they haven't discovered me yet. Look, I'm in the middle of something. What? OK, I'm coming…"

Tabitha ignored the unconscious Shane and escaped Mt. Chimney by using a hidden rope ladder. After a minute or two, Shane got his consciousness back as well, and after some more thinking, he realized what was going on. Now with Tabitha gone and most of the Magma Grunts having fled Mt. Chimney in terror, Shane decided to chase after Lance. Shane went around the volcano's crater and arrived to the mysterious machine that Lance had talked about. But apparently, he was too late: the meteorite was gone, so apparently, Lance had successfully prevented Team Magma from making the volcano erupt. But they had also escaped. Lance stared at the sky, as the Team Magma helicopter flew away from Mt. Chimney. Before the helicopter disappeared into the horizon, Shane could see a brief glimpse of the Magma boss, a pale, red-haired man.

"Oh, bummer…" Shane said.

"It doesn't matter. The point is, we stopped the volcano from erupting, potentially destroying all wildlife and Pokémon in the vicinity. At this point, I would say that you were helpful, but that would be a lie."

"It would?"

"Yes, but I think I can find other use for you…" Lance said. "Maybe we should go our separate ways, searching Jirachi on our own for a while, hmm? I'll scatter the western part of Hoenn, starting from the Meteor Falls, and you head to the eastern part, like Lilycove City and Fortree City."

"Well, all right, if you think you can survive without me!" Shane said.

"I'll try. See you later!"

**...**

While Shane continued his personal journey, Kris and Brendan had just arrived to Slateport City. Their first and foremost priority was to deliver the Devon Goods to Captain Stern, but Brendan was just too unfocused for the job. Brendan told Kris that a 'friend' of his was in town, and said he was going to head to the Contest Hall. This meant that Kris had to try and find Captain Stern herself to finally get rid of the goods.

As Brendan traveled through Slateport City in search of the Contest House, he couldn't help but to notice that Slateport was a very beautiful city. The fact that it was close to the sea and had a large beach had something to do with it, but otherwise, the little details, like the Oceanic Museum and the market square, made Slateport probably the best city in Hoenn. The Contest Hall was crowded, as apparently, a Contest was in motion. As Brendan was the self-made master of sneaking into places without paying, he could use the rear window to get inside the Contest Hall and get a peek at what was going on.

The Pokémon Contests had different rules in all regions, but in Hoenn, the basic principles were the following: first, the Pokémon were judged by their looks. In the second round, the Pokémon had to do appeals by showing off eloquent and stylish moves. In the third round, contestants had to battle each other, while still remaining stylish. As Brendan snuck into the audience, he saw that the Contest was nearing to an end: there was only a minute of time left, and the battle round had already begun. Naturally, Brendan had the worst seat in the Contest Hall, so he couldn't see well, until the jumbo screen was turned on and the announcer started talking:

"All right, we experienced some technical problems, ladies and gentlemen, but we're ready for some flashy action, action, action! There's only one minute of playtime left, left, left, and so far the score is incredibly even, even, even! The tension here could be cut with a knife, I'm telling you. All right, the competitors are preparing to finish off each other. Well, it looks like that coordinator's Ludicolo isn't doing very well, it can't seem to stop… dancing? And the opponent's Beautifly uses an amazing Sleep Powder, wow, look at all those flashy particles! Oh, and now that Ludicolo is unable to battle, battle, battle! The winner of this Slateport City Normal Rank Contest is May Birch, Birch, Birch!"

As the crowd cheered, Brendan was suddenly shocked. May had won a Contest? That couldn't be possible… As soon as the Contest was over and the coordinators walked back into their dressing rooms, Brendan marched in, ignoring good manners and promptly walking into the 'ladies only'-dressing room. Fortunately, there was no one there besides May, and she had already changed, so there was no screaming or hooting or hollering involved.

"Brendan!" she shrieked, startled by his sudden appearance. "What are you doing here?"

"I, uh, saw your appeal…" Brendan said. "Nice work. Not as good as I would have done, but I'm sure you did good enough to earn that ribbon you just got. And hey, it was just a Normal Rank contest! Everyone wins at that!"

"Thanks, I guess" May replied, looking rather proud of herself. "My Beautifly did rather good, I guess. I could have also used Combusken, but it can prove its worth when we get to the next Contest."

"So, you've got one ribbon…" Brendan calculated. "And I've got two badges. That means, we're… even! Damn it!"

"Yeah, looks like it, but it won't be long before I get my next ribbon" May said. "Feel like giving up?"

"Hell no! I'm going through with it. Besides, we still have almost 70 days left, I think. Now come on, let's head to the boatyard, I need to introduce you to a friend of mine."

"A _friend _of yours…" May echoed, rather surprised that Brendan could make friends _at all_.

"Yeah, her name is Kris, come on!"

"_Her_ name?" May echoed again, this time with a hint of jealousy.

**...**

After spending ten minutes wandering around Slateport City, Kris finally found the boatyard. But Captain Stern wasn't there. Instead, his young but morbidly obese assistant, Dock, informed her that Stern was at the Oceanic Museum instead, being invited to make a model ship out of the S.S. Anne. Dock also kept a lecture about Stern, who had also built the Oceanic Museum and the shipyard. Kris decided to do her best to get away from this yawn-inducing story an fled to the museum. But it didn't took a genius to realize that something was going on in the museum: instead of the normal visitors, a handful of tourists, the place was full of members of Team Magma; Kris could recognize the emblem in their uniforms. There was even a line forming at the door, but Kris managed to distract one of them by telling them to look in the direction of a nonexistent three-headed Mankey. When the Magma Grunts at the door tried to see the Mankey, Kris snuck into the museum.

The inside of the museum was full of Magma members too, and all the tourists and other visitors had been thrown out. The Magma members didn't seem to realize that she was even present, so Kris headed upstairs. The second floor, which contained various items, such as the model of the S.S. Anne that Stern was completing. It had other objects too, like water samples from other regions and a model of Stern's submarine and the Submersible Explorer Pod, as well as a poster announcing the upcoming construction of a vessel called the S.S. Tidal. Stern himself, a 30-something year old scientist was seen putting the finishing touches to the S.S. Anne model, which was apparently the most important object in exhibit.

"Um, excuse me…" Kris said.

"Oh, sorry, I didn't notice you" Stern said, taking his eyes off the model ship for a while. "As the curator of the museum, I feel obliged to oversee that the Oceanic Exhibit goes as planned. What do you want to know?"

"You're Captain Stern, right?" Kris asked curiously. "But, uh, you don't really look like a Captain."

"Yeah, that's some silly nickname that the townspeople gave me. But enough about me… did you have something to say to me, or should I call the security?"

"What?"

"Nah, just kidding, relax."

"Yeah, funny…" Kris snarked. "So, you ordered a package from the Devon Corporation. I forgot what the package had in it, but anyway, sign here, here and here. And here."

After the verification was over, Stern took the Devon Goods from Kris and placed the package aside.

"Thank you very much!" he said. "I've been hearing that some crooks have been attempting to steal the package."

"Well speak of the devil…" Kris said as she turned her attention to the stairway.

Two Magma Grunts had realized that the building they were in had more rooms to it, so they used whatever brain cells they had left to enter the room. Kris could recognize the other Magma Grunt as the same cockney thief who tried to swipe the goods at the Petalburg Woods. It was hard to say anything about the other one, because he looked rather identical to the other one.

"Oi, haven't I seen you somewhere before, lass?" the other Magma Grunt asked.

"Oh, that was you?" Kris said. "You see, it's really hard to tell you people apart."

"What do you mean, hard? He's got a mole right under his ear, and my left eye is slightly bigger than the right one. Now, to the point. Give us the Devon Goods, you silly twat!"

"Never!" Kris shouted. "And stop randomly switching between normal speech and cockney accent!"

"I'll think about it! Numel, go!"

"Zubat, go!"

The Magma Grunts sent out their respective Pokémon while Captain Stern bravely hid behind his S.S. Anne model. Once again, Kris had to face two Pokémon at once, but this time, she didn't let that bother her. She sent out her own massive powerhouse: Feraligatr, who could barely fit inside the museum, and accidentally knocked over some priceless artifacts when it swung its tail.

"Feraligatr, Surf!"

Feraligatr somehow summoned a massive body of water, which crashed down on the Magma Grunts and their Pokémon, causing them to slide downstairs, breaking more museum items in the process. Stern, horrified by this, grabbed his S.S. Anne model and hid in the corner, crouching and clasping on his model ship in horror.

Kris rushed downstairs to kick some more ass, but the Magma Grunts had already realized that they had gone over their heads. One of them, a savage-looking female admin, Courtney, with a similar uniform as the males, only with a black skirt, wasn't so easily frightened.

"Big deal!" she screamed. "Come back, you cowards. She just has a huge creature that can manipulate the forces of nature with her and we only have puny Pokémon, mostly fire-types. Big deal! Come on!"

"Sorry, miss Courtney, but I want to live!" one of the grunts yelled as he ran away too.

"Damn it, the boss is going to flip! First he lost at Mt. Chimney and now this…"

Courtney wasn't going to stay lamenting about her failure much longer, as she promptly fled the museum too just as the police were about to arrive. Kris recalled Feraligatr and admired her work - Captain Stern wasn't as happy about it, though…

"My museum! What have you done to it?"

"Relax, cap" Kris said. "This wanton destruction is just a small price to pay for your priceless Devon Goods that I risked my life to bring to you. Now you can continue your work on S.S. Tidal!"

"I… I guess so…"

Captain Stern, shocked, but still having the model ship and the Devon Goods with him, left the museum, and Kris soon followed. The police surrounded the museum with a 'Police Line - Do Not Cross'-tape, even though it was rather pointless, seeing as nothing particular had happened there. As Kris left the museum, Brendan and May ran to her.

"Never fear, the Brendan is here, what's the problem?" Brendan announced as he ran to Kris.

"Sorry, Brendan, but you're not hogging the glory from me this time!" Kris said. "Team Magma caused some disturbance, but I managed to _extinguish_ their arguments, if you excuse this pathetic pun. Who's that chick with you?"

"Uh, yeah, I forgot the introduction in my haste to come rescue you…" Brendan said. "Kris, this is May, and May, this is Kris, the friend I told you about."

"Oh… _she's_ your _friend_?" May asked coldly and shook hands with Kris. "Nice to meet you."

"Likewise, and - _ouch_! What was that for?"

As Kris and May shook hands, May's grip was so tight that she nearly crushed Kris' fingers. May leaned closer towards Kris to say what she had to say:

"Whatever your game with Brendan is, just so you know, she's got a girl waiting for him in Littleroot Town and she wouldn't be _happy_ to know that he's hanging around with random whores he met in some sleazy diner!"

"What are you talking about, you psycho!" Kris snapped and pushed May away. "I don't even care about him, he's a jerk!"

"Ooh, a catfight!" Brendan said. "Come on, use your claws!"

"Shut up, Brendan!" May and Kris shouted in unison, which seemed to calm May down a bit. "So, you… are not dating him? Or trying to?" May asked.

"Dating him? Getting my lips hacked off by a dull axe would probably be a more pleasant experience!"

May was slightly insulted by Kris' comment, but was forced to admit that she made a mistake. She reverted back to her meek, shy self and tried to come up with an apology, but Kris sensed that and decided to forgive her.

"Nah, don't say anything, it's OK, I would have done that myself if someone tried to swipe a man who I - I mean, my _friend_ - would care about. I forgive you!"

"Um, thanks…"

Due to the awkwardness of the situation, May decided not to look Kris in the eyes and instead, turned back to Brendan.

"So, uh, I guess I'll be heading to Vendaturf Town next…" she said. "The Super Rank Contest being there, and all… are you thinking of going there?"

"Well…" Brendan thought, being as dense as always. "Not really, I guess, since there isn't a gym in Vendaturf, after all, we're in the middle of a challenge here, come on!"

"Oh. I see. Well, uh, see you later, then."

May waved goodbye to Brendan and gave a brief nod to Kris as she left Slateport City, looking rather depressed. Kris felt some level of sympathy for May, but on the other hand, most of this was suppressed by the fact that she had tried to break Kris' fingers. Nevertheless, now that they had finished their little mission, Kris and Brendan started walking towards Mauville City, possibly in order to catch more interesting Pokémon that inhabited the Hoenn region. Or to get hopelessly lost and get tricked by some sort of weird sexual predator calling himself the 'Trick Master'. Take your pick.


	26. The Ties that Blind

**Chapter Twenty-six: **_**The Ties that Blind**_

March 1st: _"My fabulous log has gotten some great updates recently. The reason: I have started to attach ironic bumper stickers on it. Sure, I don't get most of them, but hey, all in good fun. Anyway, my hero and idol Lance has seen fit to abandon me in the middle of nowhere to look for a Pokémon that I have no idea on where to find it. And currently, I'm walking through this HORRIBLE route towards Fortree City. Route 119 or something. Seriously, there are broken bridges, incredibly thick grass, little boys dressed as ninjas jumping at me and it's raining! All the time! How much worse can it get? Oh, crap, I didn't just ask that! Everyone someone asks a question like that, something bad is bound to happen, it's in the standard plot guidelines._"

Shane was currently stumbling past the Weather Institute. This rather plain-looking building in the middle of nowhere wasn't particularly interesting, but there was something happening nearby. The doorway was surrounded by a small group of people, and among those were the world-renowned interviewer Gabby and her unfortunate cameraman Ty. This classic, American, career-centered woman was interviewing some blonde-haired schmuck who Shane knew only too well…

"Oh, no, what now?" Shane moaned as he approached the group of people to find out why someone like Damien Zachowski was being interviewed.

"Are we on?" Gabby asked. "Yeah? Good. We are here at the Hoenn Weather Institute with a hero, a certain man whose grace and handsome face are known across the land. Damien Zachowski has single-handedly defeated a group of criminals known as Team Aqua. These bandits had brutally taken over the Weather Institute and kidnapped the employees, but it was merely an hour ago when this brave young man took matters into his own hands and saved the day."

"Yeah, that's what I did!" Damien said as he smiled arrogantly to the camera. "Mind you, there were no Aqua members here when I arrived and I only stopped here to take a leak. But, you know, I saw the Weather Institute employees tied up, so after going to the bathroom and having lunch, I untied them and, quite literally saved the day."

"Wow, what magnificent bravery, untying them even though you could have possibly gotten rope burns or something. Great story. So, a brave fella like you must come from the Hoenn region, right?"

"Well, actually, I was born and raised in Kanto, but I did visit Hoenn with my dad when I was six years old" Damien said. "And, it was great. Still is. Go, Hoenn! Oh, and hey, my brother, Fred, is a journalist as well!"

"Oh, does he live in Hoenn?"

"No."

"Uh huh… well, anyway, salutations to you, Damien. Keep going at it! We will always remember your heroism! Aaaaaaand… we're out! Cut!"

As Ty stopped filming, Gabby and Damien shook hands and Damien continued his own journey somewhere. Resisting the urge to walk up to Damien and strangle him or give him a manly hug, Shane walked up to Gabby and Ty instead.

"Wait a second, what happened here? I demand to know, me being an honorary member of the Legendary Society and everything!" Shane announced. "And most importantly, why was that misanthrope Damien being interviewed, huh? What has he done? I single-handedly defeated a group of Team Magma grunts at Mt. Chimney and possibly saved the entire region from certain doom, I think, and I'm not exaggerating or everything!"

"When was that?" Gabby asked.

"Uh, a few weeks ago…"

"Sorry, that's too old, our viewers don't really remember what happened that long ago" Gabby said snidely. "And Mr. Damien Zachowski was being interviewed because the viewers need an icon, and someone handsome and successful is the perfect icon, after all!"

"Plus, he slept with her," Ty elaborated.

"Well, that too, but don't announce that to everybody", Gabby said. "My journalistic integrity has suffered enough as it is. I couldn't even get a job at Famitsu!"

"So she really has hit rock bottom," Ty said.

"Getting back to the point, you guys should totally do a report about me!" Shane said.

"Sorry, dear, but you're just not my type!" Gabby said.

"No! I mean a _real_ report, I've done important stuff, and like I said, I'm a member of the Legendary Society. But, uh, keep it on the down-low. Only tell it to your ten closest friends."

"Well, we'll see what we can do" Gabby sighed. "Come on, we'll drive you to the TV station, it's just west of Fortree City. We need to run our clip by our new supervisor anyway."

"God, I hate that guy!" Ty grunted. "Get into the car, dude. My name is Ty, by the way, and I think you know Gabby already."

"Oh, and my name is, uh… Joseph Q. Washington! But my friends call me Shane!"

"I'm just going to call you 'that guy', then" Gabby said. "Step on it, Ty!"

Accompanied by this frivolous reporter and this bored, weed-smoking cameraman, Shane headed to the TV station next. At the station, Shane got to meet Gabby's and Ty's supervisor, a tall, rugged man with a brown beard and a blue bandanna with a skull emblem on it, causing him to look like a pirate.

"Well, it was about time!" the supervisor said. "Is your story completed?"

"Yes, Mr. Archie" Gabby replied quickly. "It's about Team Aqua and their criminal deeds. They-"

"Team Aqua? Nah, it cannot be!" Archie stated. "Change it. I don't care how, but make it look like Team Magma did it. I know Team Aqua, and they're nice guys. Environmentalists, I think. Team Magma, on the other hand, are real scumbags. Change the thing. I'm going home!"

"OK, boss!"

"See ya!"

Shane turned around and saw Archie leaving the premises of the TV station. There was something deeply upsetting and suspicious about this man, and as far as predictable villains go, Shane had already encountered his share of them. But, a few minutes later, Shane saw a shiny object on the floor and completely forgot about the whole issue. Needless to say, he wasn't interviewed by Gabby or Ty and was kicked out from the station later on, forcing him to continue his pointless journey.

**...**

In the meantime, Kris and Brendan had been busy. At that very moment when Shane was hanging around the TV station, Kris and Brendan left the Mauville Gym. They had both just defeated Wattson, the local electric-type gym leader. After this man stopped his uncontrollable laughter, he awarded Brendan and Kris the Dynamo Badge. Kris was just unable to shut Brendan up, as he kept bragging about his three badges. Even though Kris reminded Brendan that she had seventeen badges already, Brendan still wouldn't stop his unbearable bragging.

"Well, this was a rather interesting trip, now wasn't it, Kris?" Brendan asked. "I particularly enjoyed uncovering the secret human trafficking ring set up by the Trick Master, gambling away all my money at the Game Corner and capturing a new Pokémon, this magnificent Electrike!"

"Yes this last month has been… well, absolute torment, really" Kris said. "I haven't really done anything new besides getting that badge, which I wouldn't be needing anyway… Hoenn hasn't taught me anything! I can't wait until I get to the Pokémon League. But I don't know where it is and whenever we see a map, you destroy it, so I'm stuck with you!"

"Yes, but that gives me plenty of time to make you realize what a charming person I am!" Brendan announced. "Now, come on! We're on a tight schedule here!"

"And you keep yammering on about that tight schedule, why's that?"

"No reason, Kris. No reason at all. Now, on to a completely unrelated subject… do you think May has already got her second ribbon?"

"How should I know? Why are you so interested in her anyway?"

"I… I'm not! Ooh, look, Kris, there's a friend of mine, over there at the Game Corner, come on!"

Kris sighed, but followed Brendan anyway as he enthusiastically walked towards the Game Corner. At the door of the casino, a frail-looking, short and pathetic young boy was trying to get in, arguing with the guard that he was 18 already. The guard wouldn't listen to him, so the boy had to leave the casino in tears.

"Whatup, Wally?" Brendan asked as he suddenly confronted the boy, spooking him. "Have you met my friend Kris?"

"Wait a minute…" Kris said as he pointed at Wally. "This is the kid who Shane knocked over in Petalburg City? You know him?"

"Yeah, I showed him the ropes. I even helped him to get his first Pokémon, Ralts!"

"N-no you didn't, B-Brendan!" Wally stuttered. "You just… You didn't do anything, your father borrowed me a Zigzagoon that I used to capture Ralts. He even told me how to catch Pokémon. You just stood next to me and insulted me and then swiped the Zigzagoon for yourself!"

"Yeah, but I was there for emotional support!" Brendan said. "It's OK, you don't have to thank me!"

"So, uh, Wally, hi, my name is Kris. Sorry that my friend pushed you to the ground earlier, he was just impatient and all that" Kris apologized. "So, what are you doing here in Mauville?"

"I-I'm on my way to become the P-Pokémon League C-champion. J-just watch me… besides, m-my Ralts and I make a great team. If we have to kill you o-or your P-Pokémon to get what we w-want, we will d-d-do it!"

"Excuse me? What was the last part?" Kris asked.

"Uh, see you later, Wally, we're in a hurry. Enjoy the country air, you'll become a healthy young man in no time!" Brendan said and patted Wally on the shoulder, before leaving Mauville City with Kris to continue the 80-day challenge. As Brendan and Kris left Mauville, Brendan was forced to tell Kris all about the 80-day challenge, but only said that he did to earn money, leaving out the fact that they hadn't really agreed on any punishments or rewards. Kris found the idea intriguing, but also couldn't help but to tell Brendan that it took her much less than that to get eight badges from Kanto.

For the next few weeks, Brendan and Kris continued challenging gyms around the Hoenn region. Their next destination was Lavaridge Town, which was gratefully cleared of Team Magma members. After Brendan failed in luring Kris to the hot springs in Lavaridge Town, the duo went inside the gym so Brendan could confront Flannery, the gym leader of Lavaridge Town, who used, predictably enough, fire-types. In a two-on-two match, Brendan's newfound Electrike defeated Flannery's Torkoal when she messed up her attacks, allowing the Electrike to evolve into a Manectric. Next, Flannery used her Magcargo, who managed to defeat Electrike, only to be taken down by Brendan's Linoone next. Flannery lost the match in record time, although this was attributed to the fact that she had just begun her career as a gym leader and was a rookie otherwise. She only got the job because of nepotism, and because she was also the hottest woman in Lavaridge Town, beating out the other participants thanks to this.

Due to this shallow atmosphere, Kris was more than willing to leave Lavaridge Town, without even bothering to challenge Flannery. Now that Brendan had four badges, his next destination was Petalburg City, where Brendan wanted to return to challenge his own father, Norman. When Kris asked why Brendan hadn't challenged him earlier, this was followed by silence. It appears that Brendan did challenge Norman right after he had started his journey, but Norman's Vigoroth had wiped the floor with Brendan's Treecko, ending the match in less than a minute. It was this humiliation which encouraged Brendan to try and constantly improve. Norman was rumored to be one of the finest gym leaders in the region, and Kris hoped that it was true, because the other gym leaders so far had been real pushovers. But the route to Petalburg City was long. As the map (that Brendan promptly devoured afterwards) suggested, the duo would have to hike a long route to Fallarbor Town in the north, then go through the hazardous Meteor Falls to reach Rustboro City. From Rustboro, they would have a short hike back to Petalburg. Kris' fingers were itching as she wanted to challenge Norman as well, but moreover, she wanted to see Brendan actually lose in something. So far, Kris and Brendan hadn't battled each other, but Kris feared that this would be inevitable, and she suspected that due to Brendan's undisputed skills, she could actually lose against him.

To get to Fallarbor Town, Kris and Brendan had to go through a dangerous and an incredibly annoying desert, also known as Route 111, the bane of trainers and gamers all over the region - and the world. The desert wasn't really a complicated route, but it was full of annoying trainers, Pokémon popping out from the sand, and most annoyingly, a constantly raging sandstorm that could potentially cause unwary trainers to lose their minds. Or their sights. As soon as Brendan and Kris entered the desert, they had to use whatever they could to shield their eyes from the constant the duo had to walk through the desert blindfolded, the experience was one of the most horrible that Kris had encountered. There was sand everywhere, and despite Kris' attempts to shield from the sand, it kept pouring into her mouth, her nose and her ears. Besides the sand, the constantly blowing wind caused Kris' sense of hearing to be useless as well, so Kris was forced to just wander around, only hoping that she was walking towards the right way. Through the wind and the sand, Kris could hear Brendan yelling something, but most of what he said was muffled, and Brendan had to constantly spit sand out of his mouth while he was talking. Besides Brendan, Kris could hear all kinds of wailing as well: people who had probably had their eyes ruptured by the sand were most likely buried under it, but Kris could still hear their wailing, which made things even more horrifying. All of the sudden, as Kris tried to yell something at Brendan, something grabbed her leg, and it wasn't Brendan or any Pokémon.

"Excuse me, is the bus station nearby?"

"Get away from me, you old woman!" Kris screamed and kicked the grabber away.

Since the people trapped under the sand were most likely beyond help anyway, Kris fled the scene, and could hear Brendan following her, meaning that she didn't have to worry about the poor fool. In the distance, Kris could hear a Pokémon, possibly a Cacnea or a Vibrava devouring the old woman, but she didn't care: she just wanted to get away from the horrible desert. Brendan grabbed Kris' arm, and while Kris didn't want to be the one leading this strange convoy, she had no other choice. When Kris tried to move, however, she heard a new voice calling out for her, so she stopped. She could hear something heavy landing in front of her, and then the same voice that had yelled at her said something:

"Kris, Brendan, here, take these!"

The unknown person gave something to both Kris and Brendan: shielding goggles which would enable them to see clearly again. Kris and Brendan wore the goggles, and Kris could see everything at least somewhat clearly. There was nothing that strange to see, though: just sand and more sand, flying around them. Behind her, she saw Brendan, and in front of her, Kris saw a familiar, silver-haired man: Steven, also wearing the same goggles, accompanied by his Pokémon, a large metallic bird-like creature.

"This is my Skarmory, my main use of transportation" Steven said, referring to his Pokémon. "And the stuff I gave you were the Go-Goggles, one shouldn't even try to get through this desert without them!"

"Oh, thank you, Steven, we would have been dead for sure if it wasn't for you!" Kris said, once again in an uncharacteristically excited and high-pitched tone. "You saved us!"

"It was nothing, please, don't touch me" Steven said and kept Kris at arms length. "Listen, I'd be really happy to take you to your destination, but I'm in a real hurry. Still, I hope that I repaid my debt now."

"Oh, definitely, with interest!"

"Gee, Steven, thanks a lot!" Brendan said sarcastically. "How could have we ever survived without a pair of goggles. That sure compensates for the fact that we risked our asses delivering that letter to you."

"Ignore him, Steven!" Kris said. "Anyway, if you're not busy-"

"Actually, I am, but we'll surely meet again" Steven said and climbed on his Skarmory again. "OK, Skarmory, Fly!"

Skarmory spread its wings and rose to the sky, with Steven in tow. Long after Steven had disappeared and was obscured by the sandstorm, Kris still waved at him, looking after him wishfully.

"Can we go now?" Brendan asked impatiently and shoved Kris to move.

Thanks to Steven's goggles, Kris and Brendan could easily navigate through the nightmarish desert. When they got out, getting to Fallarbor Town was quite easy. Sure, there were ashes raining down on them, and ninja boys kept popping out from the sand to spook them, but besides that, the duo got to Fallarbor Town quite well.

If it were up to Brendan, he would have immediately wanted to continue, but Kris was in need of a rest, so the duo checked into a motel near the outskirts of Fallarbor. To pass the time, Kris decided to go see a Pokémon Contest in the Fallarbor Town Contest Hall, and Brendan grudgingly agreed to follow her, mainly in order to keep Kris with him all the time.

Kris and Brendan made it to the Contest Hall just in time as a Hyper Rank contest was about to begin. Unlike in Normal and Super Rank contests, the Hyper Rank contests were quite demanding, and today's contest was most likely going to be a tough one. Today, four competitors had entered the contest. Unlike in Pokémon battles, where strength was the main factor, in Pokémon Contests, cuteness and flashy techniques were important. Still, the competitors weren't all 'cutesy' Pokémon, as the hyperkinetic and fast-talking announcer would soon tell:

"All right, welcome everybody to the Fallarbor Town Hyper Rank Pokémon Contest! Have we got a treat for you, people, a mind-blowingly exciting Contest with the flashiest moves in Hoenn! Literally _dozens_ of people have tried to get into our audience and the crowd is wild. Just listen to all that hollering! Well, you can't hear it now, because of the acoustics. Anyway, our first contestant is Mr. Edgar Fiddledee-Pompous-Bastard-Smythe-Smythe-Smith-Jones and his Growlithe. Well, this guy is obviously not from Hoenn!"

The crowd booed at this out-of-region fellow, but the contestant didn't seem to mind, as he loved the attention.

"Our next contestant is a lady from Pacifidlog Town, Miss Emilia Runt, and her Seedot. Wow, look at that ugly cow! Hey, come on, stop booing at me, I'm just saying it how it is. Looks are important, screw inner beauty! By, the way, miss Runt, I'm staying at the Fallarbor Ten-a-Penny Motel, and my room number is 101, just a friendly hint."

Miss Emilia runt waved at the audience, and her Seedot merely 'stood' at the stage, unsure at what it was supposed to do.

"Now, the next contestant has chosen a… Koffing. I'm sorry, the nickname of this Koffing is 'Smogon'. Oh, and it looks like the crowd loves this Pokémon. It seems that the other contestants have no chance against Smogon. Just look at that lovely smile and the way it spews gas! Who can resist that? Anyway, the Smogon's coordinator is a man called Harley Davidson from Sootopolis City. Hmm, this seems like an alias or something. Well, anyway, Harley Davidson, everybody!"

A particularly flamboyant man threw kisses at the audience and enjoyed the overpowering cheering. The coordinator, Harley, seemed to have a natural charisma in him, and his lovely Smogon seemed to be a fan favorite, even though it did nothing but smile, spew gas and repeat its own name as it floated in the air.

"I pity the next contestant… and she is May Birch, a young lady from Littleroot Town, some place in the middle of nowhere, who has a particularly uninteresting Delcatty. And look at that, the Delcatty doesn't even have a nickname!"

Brendan leaned closer towards May as the crowd applauded listlessly. Kris was also quite surprised to see May among the other coordinators, wearing a fancy, if not a little too revealing dress. Kris suddenly lost her interest to the Contest, while Brendan seemed to drool uncontrollably. At that point, Kris decided that she needed some fresh air and left the Contest Hall. The first round went rather nicely, as May's Delcatty, who was fed lots of PokéBlocks, came in second. This didn't mean much, though, since the fan favorite Smogon got 90% of the votes. Even Brendan voted for Smogon, although he decided to keep May in the dark about it.

The appeal round, accompanied by the announcer's blatantly biased comments, went rather good as well. As Harley's Smogon knew Flamethrower, it could create magnificent explosions by first spewing gas in the air, then combusting it with Flamethrower. The others didn't do so well, as Edgar's Growlithe merely created flaming rings that it jumped through, while Seedot didn't even know much attacks, placing it last in the scoreboard. May came second again, relying on Delcatty's Assist-move, although she knew that it wouldn't work if used repeatedly.

The final round, the battle round, commenced next. During the first battle between Harley and Miss Runt, Brendan was out getting popcorn, but he returned to see the battle between May and the British guy with the overlong name. May's Delcatty knew some incredibly stylish moves, like Ice Beam, Shadow Ball and Solarbeam, allowing it to overpower Growlithe by always using the correct move against Growlithe's own counterattacks. In the final, May and Harley confronted each other. In terms of points, Harley was still first, but May's stunning victory over the previous Growlithe had earned her a lot of points, meaning that Harley's lead wasn't so huge anymore.

The battle between Harley's Smogon and May's Delcatty was tough, and even though Delcatty's powerful and stylish attacks did damage to Smogon, Harley was able to counter this by telling Smogon to use Smokescreen, which obscured Delcatty's vision. Then, by repeatedly using Sludge Bomb, Smogon was able to knock Delcatty out.

"Yes! I did it! Fabulous!"

Harley rejoiced over his victory, and Brendan was already ashamed of voting for Smogon, but both May and Brendan were pleasantly surprised when the judges revealed the final amount of points: it seemed that May had earned more points than Harley, therefore making her the winner. The judges explained that even though Harley won the battle, he only used brute force, and while May lost, she lost in style. Thanks to this, May earned a ribbon while Harley had to leave the Contest Hall empty-handed.

After the contest and the aftermath of it were over, Brendan ran to May as she was leaving the premises, once again spooking her.

"Brendan, geez!" May gasped. "Stop sneaking up to me like that!"

"Sorry…" Brendan said. "Uh, but hey, good job. You got your second ribbon!"

"What? No, no, that was a Hyper Rank Contest, it was my third ribbon!" May replied.

"Third? What the bleep?"

"Yeah, well, about a month ago, when I left Slateport after our little meeting, I was kind of bummed out, so I couldn't control Combusken so well anymore. Therefore, I lost the contest in Vendaturf Town. I was really bummed out, but then this really nice guy offered to trade me a nice contest Pokémon. As I had just caught a Lotad previously, I was able to trade that useless thing away, and got a Skitty in return. Then, I used a Moon Stone on it, and got a Delcatty, and I was able to get my second ribbon in Lavaridge Town. And now, you saw me here. That means I've got _three_ ribbons now. And how many badges do you have, Brendan?"

"Well, it doesn't really matter, the challenge is hardly over yet!" Brendan said, although his voice trembled a bit. "Besides, I'm going to Petalburg City soon, and show my dad who's the boss!"

"Hey, I'm not in a rush. The next contest is in Lilycove City, but that's in three weeks. Maybe I could join you?"

"Well, I… OK, sure! You can join! I'm sure Kris is OK with it!"

"Kris…" May said coldly. "You're still hanging around with that slut?"

"What are you talking about?" Brendan asked. "She's really nice and all, and I don't know what you could possibly have against her. I'm sure you two will like each other if you learn to know each other better!"

"We'll see…"

After this wholesome little conversation, Brendan and May spoke to Kris. She was not in a very happy mood to get another weirdo traveling with her, but Kris nevertheless agreed, in hopes that having a female friend with her could help her control Brendan a bit. After spending a night at the Ten-A-Penny Motel and trying to ignore the strange sounds coming from room 101, Kris, May and Brendan started their journey towards the Meteor Falls next.

The trip back to Petalburg City didn't last too long, though, just five days, so Kris didn't have to endure the company of May and Brendan for long. It was obvious that they had some level of feelings towards each other. Kris couldn't help to notice that they were obviously quite uncomfortable to say anything too friendly to each other in Kris' vicinity. Instead, they acted like a married couple: they spent their every waking minute bickering and arguing about petty nonsense. Kris tried to keep her nose out of this, and whenever May and Brendan started arguing, she went into her own little happy place and merely walked forward and nodded whenever someone spoke to her.

Finally, the group reached Petalburg City. Kris didn't think too highly about this dull town, but it had a special importance to Brendan. After all, it was his hometown. After visiting the Pokémon Center, Brendan marched straight up to the Petalburg Gym, an unusually large building that resembled a dojo or something. Brendan had never been more self-assured, and he felt that his Pokémon were in good shape as well. Besides Grovyle, Linoone and Manectric, Brendan had also captured a Baltoy, a small, strange-looking and constantly spinning Ground/Psychic-type, that he found from the desert. Baltoy looked more like a toy than a threatening Pokémon, but it was more powerful than it seemed.

Since Brendan was Norman's son, the guard at the front door didn't mind letting Brendan through the gym trainers and straight to the gym leader, Norman himself. While May had some feint memories about Norman, this was the first time when Kris saw Norman in flesh. For a 50-year old man, Norman had kept himself in relatively good shape, and seemed to exercise a lot. He was a tall, handsome man with black hair and noticeable sideburns. In terms of behavior, he did resemble Brendan quite a lot, as he believed in power, but seemed to be a lot smarter and more modest than Brendan, although his ego was just as large.

"Back again, son?" Norman asked. "Oh, and hello there, May. If you see your father, tell him to visit me once in a while. He hasn't even added me as a Facebook friend yet. And… who is your friend?"

"Oh, dad, this is Kris. I don't know her last name, and I don't care, but she's a good trainer. Not as good as me, but she has more badges, I think."

"Is that so… Hello there, Kris" Norman said and kissed Kris' palm like an old gentleman. "You're not from this region are you?"

"Uh, no, Mr…"

"Just call me Norman. Norman Everyman, but no one addresses me by my last name."

"Yes, well, anyway, Norman, I'm from Johto. And actually, like I have told your _charming_ son numerous times, I have actually seventeen badges already, so I'm just waiting for him to show me the way to the local Pokémon League."

Norman smiled, but he didn't seem to be impressed.

"Well, I guess that counts for something…" Norman said. "Now, son, have you remembered my lesson? The one I told you last time when we battled and I defeated you in about 53 seconds?"

"How could I ever forget…"

"Don't be sarcastic with me, Brendan!" Norman scolded. "Anyway, the important thing is _power_. Don't be a sissy! Do whatever you can to win. A draw equals nothing, a loss is worse than nothing. Victory is always the key. When you're on the battlefield, forget that your opponent is even a living thing. Just crush your opponent, without mercy!"

Both Kris and May shuddered and took a few steps away from the intimidating Norman, but Brendan merely nodded.

"You're right, dad, I haven't forgotten that lesson. Live to win!"

"Live to win, that's right" Norman said. "Now, it seems that you have four gym badges, so, as I promised, we will have our rematch now. I hope that you have collected Pokémon of numerous types? I personally prefer normal-types, but besides that, type is no importance. Only power matters. My Pokémon and I battle in perfect balance. Now, you may be my son, but this is an official gym battle, so we owe it to each other to do the best we can. Two Poké Balls. Go!"

After this tedious monologue, complete silence fell over the gym as both Norman and Brendan grabbed a Poké Ball.

"Baltoy, go!"

"Vigoroth, go!"

Predictably, Norman started with one of his more powerful Pokémon, the fast and furious, monkey-resembling Vigoroth that was equipped with dangerously sharp claws. Brendan, on the other hand, sent out his own little clay figurine, believing that it could be powerful enough to defeat Vigoroth.

"Vigoroth, use Slash!"

"Baltoy, Double Team!"

Baltoy was fast enough to dodge Vigoroth's attacks and create several copies of itself. Norman was not deterred by this, and instead ordered Vigoroth to use the never-failing Faint Attack. For a moment, Vigoroth disappeared from view and then did a full-body tackle straight at Baltoy. This super-effective move effectively knocked Baltoy out, forcing Brendan to recall it.

"Damn it, this is getting tougher than I thought…" Brendan muttered. "OK, fair enough, I shall bring out the big ones, then. Grovyle, go!"

Believing that his powerhouse and starter would do the job, Brendan sent out Grovyle next. Vigoroth still proved to be a tough opponent, but Grovyle was able to overcome this when it used its powerful Lead Blade attack, knocking Vigoroth out. Norman congratulated Brendan for this, and next, sent out his own powerhouse:

"Slaking, go!"

Norman's next Pokémon was good enough to scare the living crap out of Brendan: Slaking was Vigoroth's evolved form, a massive, ape-like Pokémon that, even though it just lounged on the ground, was already intimidating enough. Brendan was obviously deterred, but tried to keep his cool.

"G-Grovyle, Leaf Blade!" Brendan stuttered.

Grovyle quickly jumped at Slaking, who didn't do a thing to defend itself, and slashed Slaking with its sharp leaves, but it didn't seem to do any damage at all.

"Slaking, Hammer Arm!"

Now that Slaking had lounged around for its own turn, it drew back its arm, then punched Grovyle directly into its green, ugly face with incredible power, and most surprisingly, incredible speed. Grovyle wobbled around the arena at first, then collapsed on the ground. Norman had won the match.

Kris and May were both excited: Brendan had finally lost. Norman, on the other hand, seemed disappointed, and scolded his son for failing to produce results. Norman then told Brendan to get away from his sight, and afterwards, accused May and Kris for 'softening' Brendan and threw them out as well. Outside the gym, both May and Kris started unleashing their annoyance to Brendan.

"Damn, Brendan, your dad's a douche!" Kris said. "I guess it runs in the family, huh?"

Brendan didn't reply. For the first time since Kris had met him, Brendan was actually quiet and merely stared blankly at the ground, still confused about his loss. After May and Kris glanced at each other, looking worried, Brendan finally started talking:

"I… lost?"

"Yeah, that you did!" Kris said. "But, hey, it's about time for you to see that you can't always win! That 'live to win' nonsense is just BS!"

"Besides, this is more than a good thing for me" May announced happily. "Now, you have only four badges and I have three ribbons, which means that I'm leading this challenge. Care to give up now, Brendan?"

"Hell no!" Brendan said, having gained his arrogance back. "That was just one match. There will be more. I'll be back, but for now, let's get to Fortree City. The next gym is there and I don't want to be late!"

May and Brendan started walking away from Petalburg City, and Kris reluctantly followed, but kept her distance so that she could avoid listening to May's and Brendan's 'conversations'. As they continued their journey, this dysfunctional trio was relatively carefree. They had no idea, that while they walked, something was happening at Mt. Pyre. The legendary artifacts, the Red Orb and the Blue Orb, were stolen, something that would most likely cause catastrophic results. It was not hard to guess who stole those orbs. The Blue Orb was seen in the possession of a pale, red-haired man, while the Red Orb was stolen by a psychotic, bearded loony with a blue bandanna. But why did they need the orbs in the first place? Possibly to awaken some sort of ancient beasts?

Looks like it's the end of the world as we know it, and I feel fine.


	27. Total Titanic, Part 1

**Chapter Twenty-seven: **_**Total Titanic (Part 1)**_

"Is the camera rolling? Is my hair good? Ty, I'm talking to you! Good? Good! I'm standing here in Slateport City, and next to me, is a sleazy immigrant called Fernando Toohardtopronounce. Today, he's telling us why he's stealing the jobs of us decent Hoenn people."

"You are rather mistaken, Gabby" Fernando said and smiled to the camera. "Actually, my parents are Mexican, but I was born in Johto. Currently, I'm here on an important quest. At first, I had nothing to do with my life. As my ridiculous uniform may suggest, I was once a member of Team Rocket. But not anymore, even though I still wear the uniform. Now, I'm a freelancer, and I'm planning to kill this guy who has foiled my plans a few times and has been a pain in my back. I have followed him endlessly, and if my predictions are correct, today, April 1st, he will arrive to Slateport City. This act of terrorism will prove that I am right and that he, as always, is wrong."

"Wow, terrorism, harsh!" Gabby said. "So, there you have it, as we all know, all Arabs are terrorists, but it seems that not all terrorists are Arabs. Other foreigners seem to be that way too. Tell us, Fernando, you sleazy bastard, what is your act of terrorism?"

"Well, it's nothing too sophisticated!" Fernando said. "I have placed this player piano hanging over the door of the shipyard. If my predictions are correct, which they usually are, my target, Silas Stephens, will arrive here in three hours. So, I will now pour some acid on the wire that is holding the player piano up. According to my calculations, the acid will burn through the rope in about three hours. After the rope corrodes, the piano will crush on my target, resulting in a nasty splat."

"Thank you, Fernando" Gabby said, and turned to the camera. "So, here we see how terrorism can run rampant even in our very Hoenn. After this terror act, I'm sure this creepy foreigner will then proceed to rape helpless women, steal a job from hard-working townspeople like you and me, only to call in sick every day and do whatever it takes to avoid doing the said job. I'm Gabby, reporting from Slateport City."

"But hey, that's not true, I'm not a foreigner and I'm not going to-"

"Aaaaaaand… cut!"

Ty smoked another joint and placed the camera in his bag while Gabby checked her makeup again. Fernando, however, was not pleased.

"Uh, excuse me, Miss Gabby, but you were lying in your report. That's not what I'm about to-"

"Listen, kid, don't take it personally, it's just journalism. If you have something to complain about, we're going to be in town for the rest of the day. OK, Ty, let's get something to eat, we have two more reports to do today!"

Gabby and Ty left to the direction of the nearest pub while Fernando was left to the shipyard. Even though he still had three hours left, Fernando wanted to make sure that his needlessly farfetched plan would go as planned, so he hid under a boat and reserved himself a first-class seat for the action. He had followed Shane all over Hoenn and planted a bug on him just to get revenge on him for some, pointless reason.

In Slateport City, the annual April Fool's Day Fair was being held at the Slateport City Marketplace, and the whole city was excited. Because of the day, people from all over the region came to buy ridiculously overpriced items and get drunk. But there was also another reason why people were flooding into Slateport City. It was today when Captain Stern was going to announce the completion of his submarine and the submersible explorer pod. So, Fernando naturally assumed that Shane, being curious and dumb, would walk directly to the boatyard, and most likely try to get as close to the door as possible. Then… SPLAT!

Or at least, so Fernando assumed. While he was doing his calculations, Shane had just arrived to Slateport City on a bus. His search for Jirachi had been fruitless, so he decided to just abandon the whole thing and probably go on a vacation in Slateport City, flashing his Legendary Society-badge and various other objects to the girls on the beach. Before that, Shane decided to visit the Pokémon Center to heal his six Pokémon. Having an eye to a detail like he did, he couldn't help but to notice the poster announcing the completion of the submarine at the wall of the Pokémon Center. But below the submarine poster was something more intriguing. Shane even release Shrew from its ball to see the poster.

"Look at that, Shrew!" Shane said as he pointed to the poster telling about the new Normal Rank Contest beginning soon in Slateport City. "I've been thinking… Pokémon battles aren't really my forte, and I'm sure you feel the same way. What do you say if we enter a Contest?"

Shrew seemed to be enthusiastic about this idea, but as Shane was about to check if he was eligible for a Contest Pass, someone familiar stepped into the Pokémon Center and seemed to recognize Shane as well, as she waved happily at Shane:

"Shane!"

"Well, it looks like this subplot is going to have to wait! Come on, Shrew!"

The moment Kris had stepped into the Pokémon Center, Shane had forgotten about the whole Contest plan and almost forgot Shrew as well, but remembered to pick it up. Shane almost ran to meet up with Kris, but controlled himself when he saw two people coming with Kris, walking behind them.

"Uh, Kris… hi! It's been too long."

"It could have been longer…" Kris remarked. "Just kidding! It's good to see you, what's up?"

"You really mean that? You're not being sarcastic at all? In that case, I'm doing pretty well. Me and Lance agreed to go our separate ways. He was just slowing me down."

"Sure" Kris said, not wanting to be snide now that she was happy to be with Shane again. "Anyway, I know you haven't met my friends. This here is Brendan, and uh, this is May. Guys, this is Shane, the guy I told you about."

"Oh, this is the idiot" Brendan said with no regard for manners. "Yo!"

"So this is Shane, huh…" May said and came forward to shake hands with Shane. "It's _very_ nice to meet you."

While May didn't find Shane attractive in any way, she had been waiting for an opportunity to make Brendan jealous for a long time, and now it finally had arrived. She pushed herself closer to Shane and giggle at him. Shane, who was never flirted at, didn't realize what the hell May was doing of course, so it only confused him. Brendan, on the other hand, did not like May's behavior at all, and started to hate Shane as well. Kris' eyes narrowed as well, but she bit her tongue and avoided any kind of remarks.

The group agreed to go see Captain Stern's submarine exhibit, and started walking towards the shipyard, May clinging on to Shane's arm and constantly walking close to him. Shane didn't understand why, but he was still flattered. As they walked towards the shipyard, they noticed that the route there was blocked by a huge crowd of people. It seemed that Gabby and Ty were once again interviewing someone, and yes, unfortunately enough, it was Damien.

"Hey… is that Damien?" Kris asked as she approached the crowd.

"Yeah, unfortunately" Shane commented. "I wonder what he did this time? Is he being declared the world biggest dick or what?"

"Hey, watch the language!" Kris reminded.

Predictably enough, the report about Damien wasn't anything important. Sure, there were wildfires and crime going on, but Damien was apparently just too important to miss.

"That sounds incredibly fascinating, Damien!" Gabby said, talking to the camera. "Here we see a typical working-class person, doing what's best for our country, whatever country this is. Thank you, Damien Zachowski. We'll be looking forward for your next journey. Aaaaaand… cut! OK, wrap it up, Ty, our next gig is at the boatyard!"

As Gabby and Ty left, the crowd soon followed as well, anxious to learn about whatever was going on. Since the group was heading to the boatyard as well, a confrontation with Damien was inevitable.

"Ah, if it isn't the gruesome twosome" Damien commented and laughed at this own witty remark. "It seems that you have gained some new friends. Hopefully they're a little more sophisticated."

"Whatup, Damien?" Kris said. "Why were you being interviewed, did they discover any activity in your brain? Or, you know, downstairs?"

"Oh, Kris, you and your lovely sense of humor" Damien said and punched Kris in the shoulder 'playfully'. "Actually, they're making a series of documents about my incredible journey through the various regions. It seems that Hoenn thinks of me as a national hero or something. Which is great."

"Come on, guys, we're going to be late for whatever is going on at the boatyard!" Brendan said impatiently. "You, uh, Damien, it's good to meet our national hero in flesh! Shall you join us when we check out the boatyard?"

"Might as well."

Neither Shane or Kris really appreciated Damien's presence, but there was no way to get rid of him, so the group slowly made their way to the boatyard. A crowd of people was surrounding the boatyard as Gabby interviewed Captain Stern. Behind Stern, Kris could see the ship designer, Dock, as well as the old friendly seafarer, Mr. Briney. Shane, Kris, May, Brendan and Damien squeezed past the unimportant pedestrians to hear what Gabby was asking. Stern seemed to be rather enthusiastic about his project, although Kris could see that Stern was very nervous.

"…which brings me to my, uh, main point, er-hem. But before that, I'd like to introduce two other important factors in the project. That fat guy behind me is Dock, he actually was the chief engineer in the submarine and is now working on S.S. Tidal. That old guy is Mr. Briney, or, better yet, Captain Briney, as he has agreed to become the skipper of both the S.S. Tidal, as well as the submarine, we hope. We all live in the Yellow Submarine as the Bobby Fuller Four once sang. Or, wait, or was it The Osmonds? Anyhoo-"

"Yes, thank you so much for introducing these people, Captain Stern" Gabby interrupted. "But we are interested in you, the driving force behind this project. Any skeletons in the closet, hmm? Angry ex-wives? Restraining orders? Unpaid parking tickets?"

"No, nothing like that..."

"OK, then, so we're through with this. This guy is boring… Anyway, the whatever submarine and that pod thingy are ready at the boatyard, blah, blah, blah. The end. Aaaand cut. OK, Ty, time to pack up! We still have to come up with three stories today!"

As Gabby and Ty started packing their equipment, the group walked up to Captain Stern, who was wiping sweat off his forehead and talking to Dock and Mr. Briney.

"Whew, that was my first time being interviewed. Pretty tough, guys… Oh, hello there, Kris!"

"Hi, Mr. Stern!" Kris said. "I brought my, uh, friends to come see the submarine. Sorry about that incident in the museum earlier…"

"Nah, it was nothing, those items were insured. Anyway, you have a large group of friends with you. I can recognize that wonderful young man, Damien Zachowski, but who are those others?"

"Uh, yeah, this dude here is Brendan, she is May, and this is Shane!"

"Yes, Shane Hendrix, a member of the Legendary Society!" Shane introduced himself and flashed his trainee badge to Captain Stern.

"Shane, stop that! You weren't supposed to brag about your status!" Kris whispered, but Stern was already quite impressed.

"Well, it's certainly good to meet you, Mr. Hendrix!" Stern said, and Shane was quite happy to see that someone believed one of his faux names. "Here, I haven't introduced you to these two yet, this my good friend Dock and this is Mr. Briney who has-"

"Yeah, we know, we heard you the first time!" Brendan said.

"Oh, geez, this is getting too hard…" Shane wailed. "What do we have here… Stern, Dock, Briney, May, Brendan, Gabby, Ty… it's confusing! There's just too many characters!"

Only a few seconds after Shane had said that, the player piano above the doorway that no one had notice before started to descend. The acid had burnt through the rope, and a few seconds later, the rope snipped in half and the piano crashed straight down. But instead of smashing Shane and promptly ending the story, it crushed Gabby and Ty who were directly under the piano at the moment.

"Oh crap, wrong target!" Fernando swore and ran away from Slateport City before anyone caught a good look of him.

Everyone in the vicinity was shocked, but not too much, as no one had really liked Gabby or Ty anyway.

"Oh my god, are they dead?" May asked.

"Well duh!" Shane said. "Anyway, that made things less confusing!"

"Good riddance, sensationalist bastards!" Kris scoffed.

"Yeah, but… who's going to do that document about me?" Damien wondered.

As everyone tried to come up with an answer to that question, the whole group was startled by the sudden noise caused by a megaphone, promptly forgetting the horrible death of Gabby and Ty:

"**Hello? Is this on? Good! Fwahahahaaa! This is Maxie, the leader of Team Magma speaking. We, the protectors of the land are confiscating this submarine to our personal use. No hard feelings, Stern!**"

Everyone looked around, but May was the first one to notice someone standing on the roof of the boatyard. It was Maxie, the red-haired, pale-faced leader of Team Magma, who held a megaphone and smirked victoriously at the people below. As he spoke to the townspeople, the submarine (as well as the pod attached to it) slowly started to leave the shipyard and move towards the sea.

"Hey, bring that back!" Stern shouted. "What are you going to do with it?"

"**Our intentions benefit the entire world!**" Maxie announced. "**Come on crew, crank up the speed a bit. And Courtney, wait for me!**"

Maxie jumped out from the roof and landed on a speedboat driven by Courtney, Maxie's second-in-command. But Team Magma was quickly stopped when two helicopters suddenly appeared in front of the submarine. For a moment, everyone thought that the police had interfered, but then they realized that the helicopters had the Team Aqua emblem on them. A familiar, bearded man also holding a megaphone used a rope to get off the helicopter, landing on top of the submarine.

"**Surrender now, Maxie!**" the leader of Team Aqua announced. "**Team Aqua has arrived to take this submarine. We need it more than you! I'm warning you, our helicopters are equipped with machine guns… and everything!**"

"**No they're not!**" Maxie yelled back. "**You're bluffing, Archie! Can't we settle this reasonably?**"

"Damn it, I knew he was the bad guy!" Shane cursed. "I just… forgot to mention it."

"**Reasonably? Screw you, Maxie!**" Archie yelled and threw away the megaphone, then signaled to two Team Aqua speedboats that approached the submarine. The Aqua Grunts jumped on the submarine and easily subdued the two Magma Grunts inside, as Team Magma was dangerously unprepared for that mission. "**Hah hah, now to our poorly hidden, super-secret hideout in Lilycove City!**" Archie announced, making sure that everyone heard that.

All the Aqua members present, Archie included, got inside the submarine, and Archie himself drove the submarine away. Maxie picked up the two Magma Grunts inside the boat, and chased after them. After merely watching and panicking, Captain Stern turned to Shane.

"You, Shane Hendrix!" Stern shouted. "You said you were a member of the LS, right? Well, get to work! Get that submarine back! And you, Damien Zachowski! You're a hero or something, right? You too, get to work! Mr. Briney has a boat, he'll take you to Lilycove City! Kick some Aqua and Magma ass for me!"

"I, but, I…"

Both Shane and Damien tried to stutter some arguments, but Stern didn't stay behind to listen to them, and instead, rushed inside the shipyard, with Dock following suit as fast as he could - which wasn't very fast. Mr. Briney, on the other hand, went to prepare his boat. Shane was in panic, but Damien, noticing that there were still people watching nearby, announced his plans:

"Well, you heard it, people! I'm going to get that submarine back! Just wait right here!"

Damien ran after Mr. Briney to help start the boat, but Shane was still unsure about what to do. May and Brendan seemed equally confused, while Kris merely stared at Shane as murderously as possible.

"Don't give me that look!"

"I have to!" Kris said. "I told you not to do that, and Lance told you too, and you did it anyway! Don't you remember that even the Bible says 'Thou shalt not pretend to be a member of a secret society' or something like that."

"Oh yeah, it was the fifteenth commandment, wasn't it?" Brendan asked.

"No, Kris, this isn't a bad thing, it's a good thing. I can finally show everyone what Damien is really like! It's just a bunch of crummy bad guys, we've handled them before!"

"You mean _I've_ handled them before?" Kris asked.

"Yeah, that's what I said. I'm just asking for some help. What about you, May and Brendan, are you coming?"

At first, the two were quiet, but May seemed to make up her mind rather quickly:

"Hell yeah, Shane, I'm coming to help you!"

"Well, if she's coming then I'm coming too!" Brendan said.

"Thanks, guys! Kris?"

Kris sighed as Shane looked at her expectantly. May and Brendan seemed to be ready to go, and they walked towards Mr. Briney's ship as well, but Kris didn't seem to want to go and face two potentially dangerous villainous teams.

"Well… can't we just let the National Guard handle it?" Kris suggested.

"Look, we've got to do it ourselves, it's the standard plot guidelines" Shane said. "And hey, if someone else would do it, then this story would be rather boring, right?"

"Well… all right! I'm in!"

_To be continued..._


	28. Total Titanic, Part 2

**Chapter Twenty-eight: **_**Total Titanic, Part 2**_

Shane, Kris, May, Brendan and Damien were all heading towards Lilycove City, using Mr. Briney's unrealistically fast boat. Or ship. Or whatever one wants to call it. Briney himself used the word 'vessel'. They were on their way to get back the stolen submarine, only to potentially confront a much larger threat, something that they never had even thought about. If Shane was actually smarter, he would have realized that both Team Aqua and Team Magma were probably trying to use the submarine to find Jirachi… or something even more powerful.

After the surprisingly short journey, Mr. Briney had arrived to the outskirts of Lilycove City. It seemed that Team Aqua had planned its hideout well. The hideout itself couldn't be missed, so the word 'hideout' wasn't the best word to describe it. But it was completely hidden from the people of Lilycove City because Team Aqua had enslaved a pack of Wailmer that blocked the bay and prevented all boats from leaving or entering Lilycove City.

Since Mr. Briney didn't want to attract too much attention, he left his vessel about fifty yards away from the hideout, so the group had to swim there while Briney waited. Surprisingly enough, the Team Aqua hideout wasn't heavily guarded or anything. In fact, the only Aqua Grunt they saw in the vicinity was the one that was using a whip to keep the Wailmer in check. This brutality disgusted the group, but they had no choice but to move on and confront Team Aqua somehow. The hideout was rather complex in nature, full of warp pads designed to cause intruders to get lost. Because of this, the group split in teams, May and Brendan going in one direction and Kris in Shane in another, leaving Damien alone.

The incredible details of the exploration around the Team Aqua hideout would be better left untold, but it didn't take Shane and Kris long to find the rooftop of the Team Aqua hideout. Along the way, Shane saw an important-looking item in one of the shelves: a familiar, large ball with an 'M' symbol on it - a Master Ball. Shane decided to keep the fact that he was in possession of it a secret, and continued to move towards the roof. The rooftop had a clear view of the bay. The less-than-covertly hidden Aqua Hideout was completely surrounded by Team Magma, who had several boats outside the hideout, one armed with what seemed like an anti-aircraft cannon. Kris and Shane briefly looked around them, then saw a group of Aqua Grunts using a rope ladder to descend towards the hidden submarine. After Shelly had entered the submarine, only Archie and another admin were left.

"STOP!"

Kris and Shane confronted Archie and the other admin, and Archie was extremely happy to see someone witnessing his moment of triumph.

"I'm glad you made it. I don't know who you are, but it doesn't matter. The more, the merrier" Archie said and gleefully took out a shining, red orb from his pocket. "See this? The Red Orb should allow me to control Kyogre, the Leviathan Pokémon, will drown the world!"

"Of course, that does make sense" Kris said, and Shane heard May, Brendan and Damien also coming to their aid. "That ball enables you to control a legendary Pokémon, riiight…"

But Archie merely laughed as he descended down the rope ladder and entered the submarine himself. The admin turned around and revealed his rough face and long black hair, whomShane recognized after some pondering:

"Tabitha? But I thought you were working with Team Magma?"

"Shush! I'm kind of playing for both sides."

"Hey, I don't care whether you like men or women, but how come you're working for Team Aqua now?"

"You're dumber than sack of hammers" Tabitha said. "But this conversation seemed to be apt for fooling you. As I speak, about ten Aqua Grunts are coming towards you from behind, while the others have finished working on the submarine down below. The only they're waiting for is me, so, bye bye!"

As the group turned to see several Aqua Grunts running towards them from downstairs, Tabitha climbed down to the submarine quickly, entering it and closing the hatch. The group reacted quickly and used the rope ladder to get down as well, but it could only hold one person at a time. Damien decided that it wasn't his time for heroism and jumped down to the sea, then swam away towards Lilycove City in terror. As Shane laughed at Damien, he almost failed to realize that Kris had already started to descend, while May and Brendan were already swimming away. Shane started to descend as well, and Shrew, who had been sitting on his shoulder the entire time, decided to finally jump into action. The Aqua Grunts were too close to Shane and could easily follow, so Shrew gnawed off the rope ladder, causing it and Shane to crash into the ocean, albeit not from afar, and the Aqua Grunts were unable to follow. Since Shrew didn't like water too much, Shane recalled the Pokémon after thanking it, then swam after Kris, May and Brendan. The submarine was already gone, with Archie and the Aquas having possibly went to find Kyogre. Things would have gone smoothly, but Mr. Briney's vessel was nowhere in sight, so the group sought a large, flat rock for them to stand on. They got on the rock and caught their breath, and Shane cursed Damien's cowardice:

"Damn it! I forgot to take a picture of Damien escaping! That would have showed everyone what a douche he really was!"

"I… I think we have a much bigger problem coming for us…" Brendan muttered, and the others turned to look where he was looking at.

The Team Magma boats that had been surrounding the Team Aqua hideout approached the group. Some of them had fire-type Pokémon standing on the boats, ready to spew fire at the group, and one boat from afar, where Maxie and Courtney were also standing in, had a grunt holding a rocket launcher in it.

"Well, well, well… what do we have here?" Maxie said. "Who are you?"

"Sir, these people have bothered us quite a few times" Courtney explained. "That guy was with that guy in the cape, foiling our plan at Mt. Chimney. And that girl was the one who trashed the Oceanic Museum when we were going to snatch the Devon Goods. I say we blow them to bits, right here!"

"Let's not be too hasty, Courtney, my blood-thirsty friend" Maxie said calmly. "They came from the Aqua hideout, so they must know something…"

"I doubt that, sir" Courtney said insistently. "Sir, if you would just allow me to-"

"Silence! I'm in charge here, Courtney! You four, at the rock. You're going to answer a few questions. First of all… do you know what _this_ is?"

Maxie held a bright, blue tennis ball-sized orb high in the air. The orb was otherwise similar than the one Archie had, only blue.

"I'll tell you what this is. This little gizmo allows me to control the magnificent Behemoth Pokémon, Groudon. When it awakens, mankind will once again have more land to walk on as Groudon expands the continents!"

"_That's_ your plan? Kinda stupid…" Shane commented.

"Shut up, cretin!" Maxie yelled. "Now, did Archie have a similar orb like this, only red?"

"Yeah, I think so…"

"Good. Now I know what he's going to do. Thanks to my loyal double agent, Tabitha, we have secured some diving equipment, allowing us to follow Team Aqua. Great, thank you!"

"Great, so _now_ can we kill them?" Courtney asked.

"No, please, remember good manners, Courtney!" Maxie said. "We should-"

"No offense, _sir_, but you seemed to have dropped the ball already. I'm calling the shots form now on, how about that. Okay, OPEN FI-"

The rest was muffled when out of nowhere, a sandstorm started raging right near the Magmas, causing sand to get into Courtney's mouth and eyes. As Courtney coughed and tried to get the sand off, a Skarmory descended to the rock where the group was standing on, flown by Steven. No werds were necessary when Shane, Kris, May and Brendan got on the Skarmory, and it just barely had the energy to carry the group to safety. After Skarmory had flown a few seconds, it started descending again, landing safely on Mr. Briney's boat, which had somehow ended up about a two hundred yards further away. The group hopped off the Skarmory, with Kris, as well as May, fawning over Steven again.

"Wow, Steven, that was amazing, you saved us again!" Kris said.

"I would have never thought of using Sandstorm or something right that! Wow, your Skarmory was amazing. And its trainer seems to be amazing too.." May said suggestively.

Brendan snorted and turned away in jealousy. Shane, on the other hand, wasn't really paying attention, and he was focused on scolding Mr. Briney:

"What's the matter with you, you old coot?" Shane yelled. "We told you to leave your ship or boat or whatever close by!"

"What? Oh, what do you know. I forgot to drop the anchor! Kind of funny when you think about it" Briney said and laughed.

"Not it's not!"

"More importantly" Steven interrupted. "What are you guys doing here? This is too dangerous?"

"That fool told Captain Stern that he was a member of the Legendary Society!" Kris said, pointing at Shane. "But he's just a freaking trainee member!"

"The Legendary Society? What a coincidence…" Steven said as he took out a badge from his pocket, showing it to everyone. It was exactly the same 'LS'-badge that Shane and Lance both had. "Steven Stone, from the Legendary Society, at your service! Besides, I met fellow member Lance the other day. You must be, uh… Shane, was it? He told about a new _trainee_, and his review wasn't very positive. And he thought you were stupid enough to lie about your status!"

"Oh, that Lance…" Shane said. "Always with the jokes. And who the hell do you think you are, _Steven_? My dad? My mom? You can't tell me what I can and can't do. I'm a grown man… sorta."

"Well, I _was _the Pokémon League Champion" Steven said modestly. "But I have up that status. Too much work. My friend Wallace, even though he is probably busier than me, was kind enough to become the Champion for me, but the rules were changed so Wallace only has to assume his Champion duties when someone beats the Elite Four. Anyway, that's not important right now. You, Shane, probably know about Team Aqua's and Team Magma's plan already?"

"Nah, not really…"

"Well, then, listen! They believe, and they might be right, that the legendary Pokémon Jirachi is hiding in the underwater cave nearby. If Team Aqua or Team Magma find Jirachi first, they will force it to grant their wish and most likely summon Kyogre or Groudon, respectively, to complete their twisted goal. They are using the orbs to control them. But those were the bad news. The good news is that they have the wrong orbs. Even if they somehow find Jirachi and Jirachi summons Groudon or Kyogre for them, it doesn't matter: those legendary Pokémon will be full asleep, and Archie and Maxie can't do anything with their orbs. You know, unless they figure out that they have the wrong ones. Or unless they have some kind of ball that can capture a legendary Pokémon…"

"You mean like this one?"

Shane showed Steven the Master Ball that he found from the Team Aqua hideout, and Steven went pale all of the sudden as he took it from Shane.

"Yeah, I found it at the Aqua Hideout" Shane said. "My guess is that Silph Co. had sent two samples of the Master Ball here, but that double agent guy, Tabitha, stole them and gave both teams one."

"Wow, how did you know that? Kris asked.

"Just guessing."

"It looks like we're not safe yet after all… OK, here's what we'll do. Mr. Briney, do you have scuba armors with you?"

"Always!"

"Good! First, I will call some backup. Lance is nearby, so he'll get here soon. Then, I will take one armor, dive to the Underwater Cave and stop those two teams. You have one Master Ball there, Shane, so that means the other team still has one. They probably won't use it until they find out that their orbs don't work, but better safe than sorry. And don't worry, Shane. I won't tell Lance that you lied about your status!"

"Wow, isn't he noble?" Kris asked, annoyingly gushing over Steven. "Not to mention brave!"

"And handsome!" May added.

"Oh, for crying out loud!" Brendan snapped and walked up to Steven. "You're not hogging all the glory, fancy pants! Don't think you can just waltz in here and grab the credit for saving the world or whatever. I want in on it too!"

"Sure, go on ahead, boy!" Mr. Briney said. "We have three armors."

"Good. I don't want to seem like a misogynist or anything, but I think it's best that the men go and the ladies will stay behind to help out Lance here on the surface!"

"Well, tough break, Briney!" Shane said. "You put on that scuba gear and go down with Steven and Brendan, I'll stay behind with the girls!"

"Shane, I was talking about you, even though you don't seem all that manly" Steven said. "Besides, Mr. Briney needs to go warn the inhabitants of nearby cities, you know, Lilycove, Mossdeep and Sootopolis. Girls, will you be all right?"

"Yeah, I have Feraligatr with me" Kris said. "Now that I think about it, it would have been smarter to use it while we were swimming for our lives. I've been spending too much time with Shane, I'm starting to become dense…"

"Shut up, Kris!" Shane said as he desperately tried to put on the scuba gear. Brendan, who was already wearing his armor, looked down to the water and shuddered at the thought of diving deep into a chilly, underwater cave.

* * *

After all the necessary preparations were done and Steven had called Lance, Mr. Briney left the group and started sailing towards Mossdeep City to warn the inhabitants, as the route to Lilycove was blocked. Shane tried all possible measures to get out of the job, but was forced to dive with Steven and Brendan anyway. In order to maintain realism, the entrance to the underwater cave wasn't all that deep, so pressure was not too much of an issue. Worse yet, Team Aqua had left their submarine right in front of the entrance, instantly revealing what was going on. Shane, Brendan and Steven swam into the underwater cave and then resurfaced inside the cave, where all hell had already broke loose: about four Aqua Grunts were present, in ferocious battle against four Magma Grunts, who had followed Team Aqua into the cave. Their individual Pokémon were battling against each other and their trainers battled with fists as well. One Aqua Grunt managed to knock his opponent into the ground and noticed the intruders, but Steven remained behind to battle the grunt as he told Shane and Brendan to find Maxie and Archie, wherever they were.

The route that went deeper towards the cave was rather straightforward, though, and after completing an annoying rock-moving puzzle, Shane and Brendan, without bothering to talk to each other, ran towards the center of the cave. Both Maxie and Archie, accompanied by Courtney and Shelly, respectively, had already arrived. They stared at the bottom of a pit, and didn't even seem to notice Shane and Brendan, who were equally stunned when they saw what was at the bottom.

Jirachi wasn't there. Instead, the enormous legendary Pokémon, Kyogre and Groudon, were present. They were sleeping peacefully, and they were separated from each other by an enormous rocky wall, most likely to prevent them from fighting or even seeing each other. Groudon, the red behemoth, was the size of a Tyrannosaurus and looked just as threatening, having enormous claws on its limbs and rocky plates on its back. Kyogre the blue leviathan, was just as large, only it wasn't bipedal like Groudon and had two enormous fins as limbs, or 'wings', resembling an orca. Both Archie and Maxie stared intently at their revered Pokémon, the grabbed their orbs, glanced at each other with immense despise and prepared to awaken their Pokémon. At that point, Shane started to laugh, which made everyone stare at him.

"You idiots!" Shane laughed. "You have the wrong orbs, isn't it obvious? The red orb actually awakens Groudon and the blue orb awakens the Kyogre, not the other way around! Fools!"

Brendan slapped his forehead and Shane suddenly realized what he had said. Carefully trying to avoid being scammed, Maxie and Archie traded their orbs as Shelly and Courtney stood in front of them, preventing Shane and Brendan from doing anything. They lifted their orbs high in the air and chanted in unison, saying different phrases.

"Kyogre, the leviathan and ruler of the oceans, wake up and obey my orders!"

"Groudon, the behemoth and ruler of the continents, I command you to cease your slumber and take your place as the ruler of the land!"

The orbs began to glow, and soon, the whole cave bathed in red and blue light. Slowly but surely, the legendary Pokémon opened their eyes, looking even more threatening. Archie and Maxie stared in awe, but instead of walking up to their masters and obeying their orders, they both jumped high into the air, destroying the ceiling of the underwater cave and starting to wreak havoc at the surface. Enormous amounts of water started to pour into the cave, and Shane, Brendan, Maxie, Archie, Courtney and Shelly started running away, but it was pointless, since it didn't really take long for the enormous body of water to crash on them, causing the whole cave to collapse. As water filled the cave and enormous chunks of rock started to fall on the group, they desperately swam towards the surface as the water level rose, hoping to get out of the cave from the hole caused by Kyogre and Groudon. At that point, Shane didn't care about anyone else, not even Brendan, as he rose higher and higher until he finally reached the surface. The current was still dragging him back into the cave, but it soon stopped when another wave threw Shane towards a rock. Shane clung to the rock, but he didn't have to hang there for long. Kris and May approached him, riding on Kris' Feraligatr. They first picked Shane, and then Brendan, who had also reached the surface. Shane and Brendan spat the water from their mouths and panted, feeling immense relief.

"What the hell happened?" Kris asked as soon as Shane had caught his breath again.

"The… Groudon… Kyogre… jumped… water…" Shane panted and Brendan interrupted to fill in the blanks: "What he means is that he messed up and even _told_ Maxie and Archie that they had the wrong orbs. Moreover, Jirachi wasn't there - Kyogre and Groudon were. And now they're here."

"What about Steven?" May inquired.

"Who cares!" Brendan scoffed. "He probably died down there or something, drowning with those grunts as he battled them."

"No I didn't!"

The group turned to see Steven standing on a rock nearby, and Brendan was secretly unhappy that Steven had lived through the disaster. May and Kris seemed to be very happy to see that he was still alive, though.

* * *

Meanwhile, both Archie and Maxie swam towards their henchmen. It seemed that Shelly and Courtney failed to make it to the surface, but at least Archie didn't seem to care about Shelly's death. Maxie, however, seemed to feel immense remorse, and was starting to regret about the whole thing as he climbed on the rock where the rest of the Magmas were standing.

"Damn… it seems to be too hard to control…" Maxie muttered ,watching as Groudon walked on the shallow part of the bay, near the shore of Lilycove and Kyogre floated towards it. "What happened?"

"Kyogre and Groudon have been ferocious rivals since the ancient days, sir" said one of the Magma Grunts standing nearby. "You may technically have control over Groudon, but it is more interested in defeating its competitor. Nice job waking them up, by the way. Now they'll destroy everything on their way and cause the weather to turn hellish. Oh, great, now it's starting to rain!"

Indeed, before the group had realized anything, dark clouds had gathered to the sky and rain was pouring down on them. A few seconds later, the wind got stronger and stronger, making the conditions rather unfortunate.

"You're right, you're right, whoever you are, you are right!" Maxie said desperately. "Just… tell me what to do!"

"I have an idea…" the Magma Grunt said. "Sir, could you give me the Red Orb for a moment?"

"OK… here!"

The grunt took the Red Orb from Maxie, but as soon as Maxie let go of the orb, the grunt took off his hood: it wasn't one of Maxie's men at all, but when the grunt removed his uniform, it turned out to be Lance in disguise. The other grunts were already grabbing their Poké Balls, but Lance was faster and released Dragonite from its ball, immediately causing the others to flinch. Lance hopped on his Dragonite with the Red Orb safely in his hand and flew towards Shane and the others, while Maxie could only watch sadly as he had lost control of Groudon.

"Well…" Maxie said and grabbed the Master Ball from his pocket, preparing to throw it to the ocean. "It looks like I won't be needing this anymore…"

"Wait, sir, don't do it!" said Tabitha, now in full Team Magma uniform, having arrived to Maxie.

"Ah, Tabitha" Maxie said. "Did you find out what Archie is up to?"

"He's controlling Kyogre all right. It looks like Kyogre is going to win this match."

Maxie and Tabitha watched as Kyogre and Groudon attacked each other in a distance. Groudon launched a Hyper Beam at Kyogre, but the latter was faster and was able to dodge. Archie, controlling Kyogre with his Blue Orb, ordered Kyogre to use Ice Beam, which was super-effective against Groudon, but not enough to wear it down. The battle would probably nevertheless end in Kyogre's favor, and then the occurring rain would flood the entire planet…

"Well, there's nothing we can do now, we lost the Red Orb" Maxie said. "And now, I'm going to throw away the Master Ball."

"I'm afraid I can't let you do that, Maxie" Tabitha said and snatched the Master Ball from Maxie. "You see, I always play in the winning team. And obviously enough, this team is not it. Buh-bye!"

Tabitha threw away his Magma uniform only to reveal that he was wearing the Aqua uniform underneath. With the Master Ball in tow, Tabitha ran away, leaving Maxie standing on the rock, watching Groudon's and Kyogre's battle.

"Oh, crap…" Maxie groaned.

* * *

The group had climbed on another cliff, where they could see the entire bay all the way to Lilycove City. Steven had flown away to warn as many people as possible about the rain caused by Kyogre, determined to make everyone stay inside. Lance had flown to Shane, Kris, May and Brendan on his Dragonite, and showed them the Red Orb, explaining that at least half of the opposition was made powerless without it. The entire group had crouched behind a large stone as the constant rain and wind did not make them any more comfortable.

"…but still have Archie and Kyogre to worry about" Lance explained. "Besides, whichever of the two wins, it makes no difference. We're screwed anyway. That's what we get for messing with things not supposed to be messed with…"

"We're not asking for a moral lecture here!" Kris said. "Isn't there anything we can do?"

"Damn, that Archie is nuts!" said Shane, who watched as Archie stood on Kyogre, holding the Blue Orb and laughing maniacally. "He won't stop easily…"

"Yes, well, the only way to prevent a disaster is to make Groudon and Kyogre stop their fight" Lance said. "Orb or no orb, those two Pokémon were destined to battle each other to the death. The answer to this can possibly be found from ancient myths and folklore. There is one Pokémon that is rumored to be able to calm down the two. Hundreds of years ago, an ancient dragon came from the sky to calm the battling legends. I think I know what Pokémon it refers to, but I know only one way that can make it appear. It's pretty farfetched and it only exists in legends, but… we could try it."

"Well, please, tell it to us!" Shane insisted.

"It has already been confirmed that the Red Orb and the Blue Orb repel each other, which is only noticeable when they are being forced to touch each other. So, if they are forcibly made to touch each other, they somehow fuse together and change form, becoming the 'Emerald Orb', unofficially. This said Emerald Orb emits a light that summons the dragon Pokémon from the sky. We need to give it a try, so here's my plan. Me and Dragonite will attack Kyogre. Then, some of you need to attack Groudo to keep it busy as well, so they won't battle for a moment. Then, one of us swoops in to grab the Blue Orb and join it with the Red Orb."

"That could work!" May said. "Let's try it, please! I'm so sick of this constant rain!"

"OK, but who will do the most dangerous work?" Lance asked. "Who's going to swoop in and grab the Blue Orb from Archie?"

"I recommend… Shane!" Kris suggested.

"Oh yeah, definitely Shane!" May said.

"Uh, yeah, what she said!" Brendan said.

"I can't think of anyone else besides Shane as well" Lance said. "Besides, he's th

Shane hadn't heard this exchange as he was focused on watching Kyogre and Groudon with his binoculars, wondering how he could get a good picture of them.

"Oh, I'm sorry, were you saying something?" he asked upon realizing that everyone was staring at him.

After the situation was explained to Shane and he had said his usual objections, the plan was put in motion. Shane did not like the situation, but knew that there was no one else who could do the job either. Shane got on his Tropius, the large flying Pokémon in his disposal, and Lance gave him the Red Orb. Shane made sure that it wouldn't fall and crammed it into his pocket. Shane then told Tropius to fly towards Archie and the Kyogre. Lance went on ahead, telling his Dragonite to use Thunderbolt on Kyogre, which effectively distracted both it and Archie, who jumped on a nearby cliff as well. This slight distraction was just what Shane needed, because Archie was just holding the Blue Orb in his hand as Shane grabbed it.

"Yoink!"

"Hey, that's mine! Well, no matter. I still have this…"

Archie was able to come up with the solution fast, as even though he had lost his orb, there was still something he could use: the Master Ball. Archie reached to his pocket, but the Master Ball wasn't there, as he had dropped it at the hideout.

"Damn you, Shelly! You screw things up, even when you're dead!" Archie shouted.

"Will you be needing this, sir?" Tabitha asked.

Archie turned around and saw Tabitha, this time wearing the standard Team Aqua uniform, blue bandanna included, giving a Master Ball to Archie.

"Excellent work, Tabitha!" Archie exclaimed and took the ball. "I can still control Kyogre with this. Where did you get it?"

"I stole it from that chump, Maxie!"

"Good work! Now, I need you to swat that bothersome fly!"

"No problem, sir" Tabitha said and grabbed a Poké Ball. "I have just the Pokémon for the job! Ditto, go!"

Tabitha sent out his Ditto, but while it basically looked just the same as any other Ditto, this one looked more sinister and more powerful. Just like Tabitha ordered, the Ditto transformed into the exact replica of Shane's Tropius, allowing Tabitha to chase after Shane.

In the meantime, Shane, now in possession of both orbs, was flying around, searching for a place to land his Tropius. Everyone else was busy, as Kris' Feraligatr, May's Altaria and Brendan's Claydol were all in the middle of the battle against Groudon, while Lance's Dragonite attacked Kyogre aerially. Groudon attacked Kris with Flamethrower, and Feraligatr managed to douse the flames with Water Gun just barely. As Groudon moved towards Kris, it swung its tail, almost hitting May's Altaria.

"Hey, watch it, you brute!" May yelled. "Altaria, Dragonbreath!"

Altaria attacked Groudon, but it barely damaged the legendary behemoth. It merely annoyed, it and Groudon attacked in turn by striking Altaria with Hyper Beam, knocking Altaria out and causing May to fall off the Pokémon.

"May!"

Brendan, who saw the accident, jumped off Kris' Feraligatr and jumped into the water, catching May just in time as she was about to land face down on the rocks, effectively saving her life. May was so grateful that she didn't seem to find the proper words, but Brendan understood what she meant and lowered May back to the ground. Kris, who also saw the whole thing, felt sympathy for Brendan and May for the first time.

Shane had also seen this, but was unable to do anything as he was still circling in the air with Tropius. As he watched Kyogre battling Dragonite, something just occurred to him: he still had the Master Ball, he had the opportunity to capture a legendary Pokémon, it was open to him. But this was not the time for it. After all, Shane respected them too much to lock them up in balls. As such, Shane did what was the best for the Master Ball he had: he threw into the ocean.

Just after he had thrown away the ball, he saw Tabitha flying after him, piloting an exactly similar Tropius.

"Where did you get that?" Shane yelled.

"You're forgetting, I am the master of disguise!" Tabitha exclaimed. "My Ditto is as well, as it is able to transform into any Pokémon. Sure, there's nothing too special about that, but it actually becomes better than the Pokémon it transforms into! You're going down, Shane!"

"Over here, Tabitha!"

Shane and Tabitha both looked down: Kris' Feraligatr was just below them, ready to attack.

"Feraligatr, Ice Beam!"

Feraligatr attacked Tabitha's Ditto-turned-Tropius, and as the attack was four times as effective as normal against Tropius, it immediately froze Tabitha's Ditto's wings, causing it to transform back into its Ditto form, crashing down into the ocean.

"Now, Shane, combine the freaking orbs!"

"Oh, yeah, right!"

Instead of descending, Shane told Tropius to fly in similar circles and Shane grabbed both the Red and Blue orbs, forcing them together. It was difficult, but eventually the two orbs touched each other, just slightly.

But this was enough to make the two orbs fuse into one, that changed colors completely. First, it was, logically enough, purple, then it became green, then it turned orange, and then it started glowing in all imaginable colors until it finally shot a blast of bright, white light directly into the sky. The rain subsided and even the wind stopped, as something humongous emerged from the sky. It was Rayquaza, just the Pokémon that Lance had predicted, the Ziz, the protector of the skies.

Rayquaza was an extremely long, skyscraper-sized green snake-like creature that resembled a Chinese dragon quite largely. What was most amazing that Rayquaza didn't do anything: it merely flew in the vicinity of the bay, causing Groudon and Kyogre to immediately stop their scuffle. Archie could only watch in panic as the two legendary Pokémon returned back into their cave, ready to sleep for another five hundred years. In his insane fit, Archie grabbed the Master Ball that Tabitha brought him and threw it towards Rayquaza, deciding to capture this incredibly powerful beast. But Rayquaza opened its mouth, spitting an extremely powerful Hyper Beam towards the Master Ball, causing the ball to explode in mid-air. Archie roared in rage, but Rayquaza's next attack was aimed at him. The Hyper Beam didn't even have to hit him: it just destroyed part of he cliff Archie was standing on, causing him to plummet on the rocks below. One particularly nasty sound later, Archie was dead.

With everything back in order, Rayquaza returned to the sky, flying towards the ozone layer again, and the world was safe, probably. The Emerald Orb was split into two orbs again, but as Shane stared at the sky, he didn't even notice as both orbs fell into the ocean. The remaining Aqua and Magma Grunts tried to escape, but were apprehended by the police shortly afterwards. Maxie surrendered willingly, believing that a prison sentence was the least that he could suffer for nearly bringing the world to an end or something. After stopping for donuts, the police also found the bodies of Archie, Shelly and Courtney, but no one had found Tabitha, the mysterious double agent. Was he dead, or was he just hiding? Lance, on the other hand, didn't have much time to thank the group as he had to fly away, but the story was far from over for the rest of the group, who decided to head towards Mossdeep City. Shane was still bewildered by this experience, but May was already prepared to taunt Brendan:

"Just remember, I have four ribbons already! You have only five badges, you still need one from Mossdeep, one from Sootopolis and one from your dad. And all I need to do is to win that little Grand Festival. Piece of cake. Mind you, Brendan, you can give up now if you want."

"Hey, even though we were just in an apocalyptic, life-threatening situation, a challenge is a challenge!" Brendan said. "I'm still going to kick some ass in Mossdeep City, like it or not!"


	29. The Last Days

**Chapter Twenty-nine: _The Last Days_**

April 10th: "_It looks our craptastic journey in Hoenn is coming to an end soon, or at least, so do these other people say. I'm not so sure about myself. I forgot take a picture of that magnificent Rayquaza, and now it's too late. It was so photogenic too… Well, anyway, I have just arrived to Mossdeep City, accompanied by a bunch of weirdoes. I think I can safely say that **I'm**__ leading this convoy!_"

"Uh… Kris? What is he doing?"

Shane was so focused on his writing that he constantly had to adjust his direction and watch out for trees as the group walked towards the Mossdeep City gym. Kris was so used to this that she didn't mind, but May and Brendan why Shane was writing a diary, or like he liked to call it, a log.

Despite Brendan's objections, the group visited Steven first. He was living in a small, rather empty house at the edge of Mossdeep City, right near the sea. He didn't have much furniture, suggesting that he had just moved in, but he did keep lots of rare rocks and stones in display, just like his father, Mr. Stone did. Despite Brendan's hatred for Steven, one would have to say that Steven was still generous. He gave Brendan one of his personal favorite Pokémon, a Beldum, so that Brendan would have six Pokémon, the minimum that was required to compete in the Pokémon League. Of course, Brendan immediately found flaws from his new Beldum: it was small, weak and knew only one attack. And hey, it wouldn't probably grow up to become anything formidable anyway.

Next, the group finally found the Mossdeep Gym, but there was a notice posted on the door.

"Mossdeep City Pokémon Gym. Special Notice: only double battles accepted" Brendan said, reading the notice out loud. "Damn it! There's always some stupid catch. Well, May, I guess we're going to battle against Tate and Liza, huh?"

"No way" May said. "I'm not going to battle, my Pokémon need to rest for the Grand Festival."

"Kris, how about you?"

"I think I'll pass… I want to see you wallow in your own stew for a moment" Kris replied.

"Hey, I'm not doing anything, I'll join you as a battle partner!" Shane announced.

"You? I don't know… I need someone with more… you know."

"Come on, Brendan, you ass" Kris said. "Let Shane battle with you. If you lose, you can try again tomorrow!"

"But just remember, we only have two weeks… no, thirteen days left!" May said.

Brendan grumbled some sort of reply before stepping into the gym with Shane in tow. Shane hadn't really battled in a while, but he did have seven badges already. The seventh one was earned off-screen somewhere in Hoenn, though. The battle had to be a double battle because Shane and Brendan were up against a duo of gym leaders, Tate and Liza, who used Psychic-type Pokémon. The fact that Tate and Liza seemed to be two young girls worried Shane more than the fact that they battled in a pair. Or, at least Shane thought that they were girls…

"Hey, just so you know-" Liza said.

"-I'm a guy!" Tate continued.

"No way. You're not a guy! I'll allow it for Bugsy and other androgynous idiots like that, but please, you can't be a guy. You're twin sisters, right?"

"No, we're just twins-" Liza said.

"-and I'm still a guy!" Tate continued.

"Could you stop finishing each others sentences?" Brendan asked. "It's creepy."

"But how could we not-" Liza began.

"-abuse our mind-reading powers" Tate continued. "Right now, you're thinking about fast cars, sports and food, aren't I right?"

"Yes you are, little girl. Boy. Whatever." Brendan said.

"And you" Liza said, pointing at Shane. "You…hmm… you don't seem to-"

"-think about anything!" Tate finished.

"OK, not only is that creepy, but it's getting annoying too, so stop it!" Shane said. "I thought we were supposed to have a battle?"

"You're absolutely correct!" Liza said. "Where are our manners? OK, Tate, little sis- I mean, little brother. Try to get it right this time! Go, Lunatone!"

"Go, Solrock!" Tate said.

Tate and Liza chose rather unorthodox Pokémon that Shane hadn't ever seen before. Since he didn't have a plot-convenient, electronic encyclopedia with him, he had to guess what Lunatone and Solrock could do. They were both obviously Rock/Psychic-types, Solrock resembling an orange sun and Lunatone looking like a grayish moon.

"OK, then. Grovyle, go!" Brendan said.

"Go, Meme!"

Knowing what attacks would be super-effective, Brendan and Shane chose their respective Pokémon, Shane using his newly evolved Marshtomp, nicknamed Meme, and the battle began. Liza was obviously the more competent trainer, using her Lunatone to use attacks such as Reflect and Light Screen, effectively blocking out Grovyle's Bullet Seed and Marshtomp's Water Gun. This gave Solrock the opening to attack, using Flamethrower against Grovyle, then Solarbeam against Meme. But while the attacks were powerful, both Grovyle and Meme were fast enough to dodge the attacks. May and Kris watched from the sidelines. May was cheering for Brendan quite loudly, while Kris watched quietly, surprised at the fact that Shane could still handle his Pokémon surprisingly well. What Shane lacked in battle skills, he obviously made up in treating his Pokémon well.

The battle went on rather well. Even though Tate and Liza seemed to share a telepathic connection, it didn't seem to work so well as Tate kept screwing up. Moreover, Shane and Brendan worked rather well as a team, probably due to the fact that they both had rather obtuse personalities. Also, they had chosen quite fast Pokémon, while Tate and Liza both had slow chunks of rock. When Grovyle used Brick Break to shatter Lunatone's Light Screen, Meme finished the battle by using Surf, which crashed down on both Lunatone and Solrock, knocking them out. Surprisingly enough, Shane and Brendan had a won, and they both earned a Mind Badge.

"Wow, I was sorely mistaken about you, Simon" Brendan said with honesty. "You did quite well."

"The name is Silas, I mean, Shane. And yeah, who'd a thunk it…" Shane mumbled, being rather surprised himself as well. "Well, time to add this badge to my collection. And by collection, I mean my _enormous pile _of badges. And by enormous pile, I mean… eight badges."

"Congratulations, you two!" May said. "Now, are we quite ready to go to Sootopolis? These chapters are getting dangerously long as they are!"

**...**

April 13h: "_The clock is ticking, and this ridiculous little challenge between May and Brendan is soon over. Sure enough, they keep psyching each other out constantly, but I have a feeling that there's no real 'rivalry' going on between them. Or, at least, that's what Kris tells me. I have no idea what she meant, but whatever. We were lucky enough to bump into Mr. Briney in Mossdeep City, so he arranged us a lift to Sootopolis. What a man!"_

Sootopolis City was a rather peculiar place. Unlike any other city in Hoenn, it was basically an island, smack-dab in the middle of the ocean, surrounded by a tall, white rock. There were only a few ways in. One was diving, the other was flying, and there was also a small crack in the rock that allowed ferries to enter the city. Most importantly, Sootopolis City was the place where the legendary Wallace Cup, the final frontier for coordinators, was held. The winner of the cup would get to challenge the master of coordinators, Wallace, himself. It was also the place where Brendan would get his penultimate badge. The gym leader was Juan, a master of water-types who had

Juan had somewhat powerful Pokémon, but Brendan's ever-growing confidence allowed him to take Juan on and defeat him just barely in a three-on-three match. While Brendan's Grovyle was just about to lose to Juan's Blastoise, the Grovyle evolved in the middle of the battle, becoming Sceptile, that eventually had the power to defeat Blastoise by using the most powerful grass-type attack in existence: Frenzy Plant. After this victory, Brendan learned that Juan was Wallace's mentor back in the day. Wallace used to be the gym leader, but he didn't like the job and wanted to become the master coordinator instead. So, Juan, the already retired gym leader, took back the job. Currently, Wallace was also the Pokémon League Champion, not to mention the sponsor of the Whirl Cup and a freelance artist, whose paintings were sold to the Lilycove Museum. May and Brendan both questioned Juan about Wallace's battle and contest techniques in case they would get to face him.

After the group left the gym, they were in for an even larger surprise. Back in Mossdeep, the group told Steven that Norman was Brendan's father and after getting the Rain Badge from Juan, Norman would be Brendan's last obstacle. So, Steven, an old friend of Norman's, had called him to Sootopolis so Brendan could battle him in a completely official battle, just outside the gym, in order to avoid a painstaking trip back to Petalburg. Now, Norman was ready for Brendan at the door of the Sootopolis Gym, and even Brendan had to admit that Steven wasn't a dork after all. As Shane, Kris and May watched, Brendan and Norman battled for the Balance Badge, and more importantly, family honor. But even _more_ importantly, the badge. It was a brief one-on-one battle, Brendan using his Claydol and Norman his Vigoroth. While Vigoroth was fast, Claydol was able to use attacks such as Calm Mind and Cosmic Power, raising its defenses and offenses, allowing it to defeat Vigoroth by first throwing it on the ground by using Psychic, then finishing the battle with Earthquake, knocking Vigoroth out. Brendan was victorious, and got his eighth badge at last. Even Norman was forced to admit that Brendan was good, and said he would watch Brendan's league battles from his TV at home. For a moment, the others wondered why Norman didn't bother to come at the league personally, but Brendan was quite flattered to hear that Norman would watch his battling at all.

The day after, April 14th, was the day when the three day long Wallace Cup would truly start. It seemed that May had the lead in the challenge, and if she would win the contest, she would win the challenge. While Brendan threatened to leave May alone in her contest and head straight to the Pokémon League, he gave up that idea when Shane and Kris told him that they were going to stay and watch May's contest. Since giving up under peer pressure was always the right thing to do, Brendan did so as well, and decided to stay and watch the Wallace Cup.

The cup took place inside the massive Contest Hall built on the highest cliff found from Sootopolis City. From the windows, one could see a magnificent view, but no one was staring out of the windows, but at the contest arena. Even though the cup was the final contest for coordinators, the rules were still the same. One Pokémon was allowed per contestant, and May's previous opponent, the increasingly flamboyant and annoying Harley, was already present, this time with another Pokémon: a Cacturne. May decided to use the best she had, and chose her Blaziken.

The details of the previous contestants would be insignificant for the story, but fate had chosen that May and Harley would need to confront each other in the final battle round. There were literally _several_ people in the crowd rooting for the May, and the others were merely watching the grand finale to pass the time. Despite getting past her competitors, May was in hot water against Harley, because while her Blaziken technically had the type advantage, Harley was the master of flashy techniques. His Cacturne could use attacks such as Spikes and Sandstorm exceptionally well, which weren't good for Blaziken, as it couldn't see past it. May managed to charm the judges by telling Blaziken to use Flamethrower at the sandstorm, creating glistening particles on the air. But Cacturne was nevertheless stronger, as it was able use Giga Impact against Blaziken, exploiting it weaker defenses, and knocking it out. The judges were impressed, and gave Harley a slightly larger score than May, making Harley the winner. During the final day of the cup, Harley would face Wallace himself. But which one of them won, the group didn't know that (it was Wallace, though) because they were ready to leave Sootopolis City and head to Ever Grande City next to compete in the Pokémon League.

But as Shane and Kris were ready to lave, boarding Mr. Briney's vessel, May was pouting near the Contest Hall, wallowing in her misery. Brendan, deciding not to taunt May, actually decided to comfort her instead.

"Hey, May" Brendan said carefully after finding May behind the hall. "Uh… too bad you lost. I thought you looked real great out there!"

"Yeah, sure…"

"No, really" Brendan said. "Screw that fa-… Uh, screw that Harley. You were the moral winner, and uh… Well, let's face it. You may have not won the Wallace Cup, but who cares? I'm sorry, I didn't mean to say it like that… I mean, life goes on, doesn't it? Besides, you practically won the challenge. Kind of."

"Yeah… I did, didn't I?"

"Kind of" Brendan added.

May wiped her eyes and was able to look Brendan in the eyes again, feeling much better about herself, and even being able to laugh about it.

"Besides, you know, it was either me or Harley out there." May said. "You know, one of us was bound to lose. I just hoped it would have been Harley."

"Cheer up, because you know what they say, some things in life are bad, they can really make you mad, other things just make you swear and curse. Just remember: always look on the bright side of life."

"That was deep" May said.

"Thanks, I read it from a cereal box! Now come on, the freaking Pokémon League awaits!"

**...**

Before sailing to the Pokémon League, Mr. Briney stopped at Snuckey's, a conveniently placed rest stop in the middle of the ocean. While stopping for a refreshing and mildly alcohol-containing drink, Shane saw a map of the Hoenn region. Something in particular attracted his interest: a place in the middle of nowhere, just south from their location and north from Pacifidlog Town. It was labeled 'Sky Pillar', next to an equally important location called 'Mirage Island'.

"Hey, old man, what are these places?" Shane asked, pointing at the map.

"The Mirage Island? Oh, no, you shouldn't go down that road!" Mr. Briney warned. "In fact, it's nearly impossible to get there, and I hear that there's nothing worth looking there. The Sky Pillar, on the other hand… well, the folks at Pacifidlog Town say that a legendary dragon Pokémon that controls the sky lands on the top of the Sky Pillar to rest every once in a while. Which is strange, because others say that it never needs to rest. Anyway-"

"You had me at 'legendary'" Shane said. "After all, I'm a Legendary Pokémon watcher and learn-about-er."

"Is that your official title?" Kris asked.

"Well, you don't need to be mean, it's still unofficial!"

"Hold on, so you want to go to the Sky Pillar?" Briney asked.

"Yeah, are you going to stop me, old man?"

"Not at all. In fact, a ferry that leads to the Sky Pillar is going to stop here in a few minutes. Go if you like, I don't care."

"Shane, look" Kris said. "We just met each other again about two weeks ago, and now you're going away again? Can't you just stay at least for the duration of the Pokémon League? I mean, what if lose touch again?"

"Sorry, babe, but I'm going where the wind is blowing and stuff."

"Shane, if you call me 'babe' ever again, I'm going to crush your fingers."

"Duly noted."

"Dude, you have eight badges, why don't you compete in the Pokémon League?" Brendan asked. "I wanted to kick your ass in the tournament!"

"Another time, Brendan. That's not really my thing. But, uh, I'll read about your battle in the paper."

"Speaking of newspapers…" May said, not having paid attention to the discussion but going through the expired items on sale at Snuckey's. "I've got one here right here, from two weeks ago. You'll never guess… there's a story about Captain Stern's submarine here!"

Shane, Kris and Brendan gathered around May to read the article referring to Captain Stern's submarine. Surprisingly, it didn't even mention any of the others, but rather, the whole article was about a certain person that caused Shane's blood to boil:

"_The story of a hero, by award-winning journalist Fred Zachowski. This story is about one glorious man, Damien Zachowski (no relation). Yesterday, a gang of thugs broke into the shipyard of Hoenn's beloved ship-nerd, Captain Stern, stealing his prized submarine. Damien, who was in the vicinity, boldly stepped up and agreed to take charge, promising to bring back the submarine. The incredible details of this shall be left untold, but only a few hours later, the brave, young Damien returned to Slateport City with the submarine and the explorer pod, fully intact, in tow. Damien even subtly hints that he was the one behind the defeat of the criminals Team Aqua and Team Magma. While the world is unsure, this journalist feels no reservations about saying that Damien Zachowski was the one who freed Hoenn from this unholy terror. Kudos to you, Damien. We owe you our lives!"_

The whole group felt nothing short of disgust while reading the article, and Kris even looked like that she had just eaten a bowl of feces. But no one was more pissed than Shane. He read the article numerous times, but indeed, there were no mention of him or the others. The others realized that while they were focused on saving the world, it was probably Damien who returned to the scene after the hubbub was over to get the submarine back. And now, he had even took credit for defeating Team Magma and Team Aqua. What an outrage!

"That's it!" Shane groaned. "I'm going to the Sky Pillar, whether you like it or not. Screw you guys!"

As Kris, May and Brendan continued sailing towards Ever Grande City on Briney's vessel, Shane caught the next raft heading towards Pacifidlog Town. It took him many days, but he eventually got there. After having some weird chats with the local NPC's, Shane rented a boat and sailed to the Sky Pillar all by himself. After getting lost three times, he finally found it. Now that Shane thought it, it wasn't very hard to miss. The Sky Pillar was an enormous, stone tower stretching up towards the sky, being as high as the eye could reach. No one knew when and how this colossal, ancient skyscraper was built, which made the place even more interesting for Shane.

Unfortunately, the tower was very, very hard to navigate. It was filled with obstacles, such as cracks on the floor, very small tunnels and heavy chains that needed to be pulled in order to advance. Shane didn't make it any further than to the third floor, when he was attacked by a wild, steel-type Pokémon with an enormous jaw, Mawile. Seeing this strange and exotic Pokémon, he wanted to catch it immediately, so he sent out his Crobat.

"Zuba, go!" Shane yelled. "That ugly thing won't stand on our way for long. Zuba, use Hyper Beam!"

Zuba did as told, circling around Mawile until it found a good spot to aim, then attacked with Hyper Beam. But Mawile was quicker than Shane thought, and used Protect just as Crobat attacked. The Hyper Beam ricochet off Mawile's surface, hitting the walls of the pillar until it finally struck Crobar itself. As Shane rushed to catch Zuba, he saw that its wing was badly injured. For a moment, Shane was completely unsure about what to do: if he kept going, he could possibly reach the top of the tower and meet Rayquaza. But he couldn't just leave Zuba injured, so he reluctantly did the right thing and fled the Sky Pillar, deciding to head to Slateport City, where he could heal Zuba and transfer it away.

But as Shane struggled at the Sky Pillar, what happened to Kris, May and Brendan? Did they get to the Pokémon League Tournament in Ever Grande City on time? Did Kris or Brendan manage to win the tournament? Who won the Elite Four and was declared the new Champion of Hoenn?

The answers were: yes, no and Wally. Yeah, that's right, Wally. That little sniveling, pathetic wimp from Petalburg City who just started his journey a few months ago? Yes, that Wally. I bet you didn't see that coming.


	30. On Top of the World

**Chapter Thirty: **_**On Top of the World**_

Upon arriving to the Pokémon Center in Slateport City and healing his Pokémon, Shane moved to the always-convenient Pokémon transfer device located near the PC. Deciding to bid his last farewell, Shane briefly let Crobat out of its ball. Watching sadly at Crobat's bandaged wing, Shane tried to think of something to say, but as usual, he couldn't really think of anything.

"Well, Zuba…" he started, but was unable to continue. "Oh, what the hell. I'll miss you. We've had some good moments together. In fact, if this was a TV show, there would now be a montage of all the great moments we've had together or something. I'll come back for you, but right now, you're better off at Ferguson's. Goodbye!"

Zuba seemed to acknowledge these words, because it emitted a high-pitched, but nevertheless happy shriek and flapped its healthy wing for a moment. To avoid tearing up, Shane promptly recalled Zuba to its ball and placed the Poké Ball on the device. After inputting the coordinates, Shane's Crobat was sent away, leaving Shane with only five Pokémon: Shrew, Droid, Meme, Starmie and Tropius, the last two being used quite rarely. After he had finished drying his eyes, Shane then left the Pokémon Center, completely unsure about his next destination.

The ferry from Evergrande City was about to arrive to Slateport, with Kris, May and Brendan on it. The Pokémon League Tournament was over, and the mood wasn't very happy as the group returned to the mainland. The trio were all in separate places, May standing on the deck, Kris being ready near the door and Brendan drowning his misery in the bar. They hadn't talked to each other throughout the entire trip, but soon they would be forced to: their journey was coming to an end.

**...**

As the ferry finally arrived to Slateport and the always busy and pushy crowds of people all rushed out of the ferry, Kris, May and Brendan were the last to walk on land. Brendan pretended to be tying his shoelaces whilst May was about to say goodbye to Kris:

"Well, Kris… it's been an _interesting_ trip."

"It sure has. It's too bad we didn't get to spend more time together" Kris lied, while really being ecstatic that she would be able to finally leave this duo.

"I know… it hasn't even been that long since we first met in this very town" May said.

"Uh, yeah… well, you know, write to me. Call me. Whatever. See you later!" Kris said, and forced herself to smile.

"Goodbye!" May said, spreading her arms like she was ready to give Kris a hug, but stopped when she realized that Kris had no intention of doing so.

After a few seconds of uncomfortable silence, Kris waved at May, said her last goodbye to Brendan and quickly walked away. Now, just May and Brendan were standing near the piers, completely alone, as there weren't even sailors or prostitutes around.

"So…" May said, and Brendan had finally stopped tying his nonexistent shoelaces.

"So…what?" Brendan asked. "I guess you're heading back home to Littleroot Town, now, huh, May?"

May sighed.

"Look, Brendan, why is this is so hard? Why can't we just talk about how we feel? Isn't there any way we can get over our bottled emotions and start living fully? You like me. I like you. What's the problem?"

"Uh, I don't know…" Brendan mumbled, avoiding the subject and looking at his feet.

Then, before May could say anything more, Brendan suddenly remembered something.

"Hang on a second!" he said. "Haven't we forgotten something? Our 80-day bet, the one we made sure to mention in every chapter since our introduction! It's been… 78 days since we first started our journey. Can you believe that?"

"That's two and a half months…" May said, also reminiscing. "But who won the bet, then?"

"Well, certainly not you!" Brendan scuffed. "I mean, you did a good job getting those ribbons, but you were absolutely creamed at the Wallace Cup!"

"You want to talk about a crowning moment of failure, huh?" May retorted. "I wasn't the one who got his ass kicked by _Wally_. Come on, Wally, out of all people. That guy couldn't-"

"Yeah, yeah, I know…" Brendan said, smiling. "So… neither of us won, then?"

"Looks like it, yeah" May replied, and she was also smiling.

"Why does it have to be so hard?" Brendan asked after a brief silence.

"Oh, screw it!" both May and Brendan said in unison.

And at that point on, they became officially a couple or something. What? Did you expect them to kiss and make up? Get out of here! One would have to acknowledge that Brendan would remain as an egoistic jerk while May would be a dominating, obsessive skank even moreso in the future... but at least they made up. After this day on, May and Brendan continued to hold on tight to their dreams: Brendan still wanted to make it as a trainer while May aimed to become the best coordinator in the Pokémon world. After spending the last days of their little challenge in Hoenn, the two decided to head for the first region they could find on the map.

**...**

Meanwhile, Kris, after realizing that she was stranded in a faraway region with no money, decided to seek shelter from the Slateport City Pokémon Center. Thanks to the friendly personnel and the fact that the Center was open 24/7, Kris was granted the opportunity to spend the night at the Center. But due to budget cuts, the Center had no human-sized beds, so Kris was forced to sleep on the benches. Fortunately, there were no homeless people or alcoholics present, so it was just Kris. She eventually found a large pile of newspapers scattered across a row of benches, and decided to sit on them - only to find a strange lump underneath them.

"Ouch! Watch where you're sitting!" the lump flinched and quickly stood up, pulling the newspapers away, only to be pleasantly surprised: Shane was sleeping underneath the newspapers, having undergone the same fate as Kris and having no place to stay.

"Kris!"

"Shane! The hell are you doing here?"

"Long story short: no money. I'm assuming the same goes for you?"

"Yeah…" Kris said. "I finally had the opportunity to get away from May and Brendan."

"What are they going to do?" Shane asked.

"I don't know, and frankly, I don't give a damn. They can do whatever they want. Whether or not they're going to end up together, I don't care. I spent over two months roaming around this God-forsaken region with Brendan, having to endure his bragging and his massive ego. And I've already had to do it once before!" Kris added, to the displeasure of Shane.

"Yeah, people like that are a real drag" Shane muttered and offered to move a bit so Kris would have some room to sleep on the benches as well.

After Kris and Shane had argued about who got to use the sports pages to keep themselves warm, the two were eventually both laying on the benches, desperately trying to get some sleep before they had to wake up. When this failed, they could only talk.

"Kris…"

"Yeah?"

"We're going home tomorrow, right?"

"Let me rephrase that for you: I'm going to my home, you're going to yours. I live in New Bark Town, you live in Viridian City, remember that."

"Yeah, I guess so. Hey, a guy's got to try, right?"

"Right… Good night, Shane."

"Good night, Kris!" Shane said and tried to turn around to get into a more comfortable position, only to fall down on the floor. "Son of a-"


	31. Sinnoh: The Silver Spoon

**SINNOH**

**Chapter Thirty-one: **_**Sinnoh: The Silver Spoon**_

"…happy birthday dear Dawn, happy birthday to yooouuuuuuuuu!"

The last syllable was stretched quite a lot by Dawn's drunken uncle, but besides that, the song went well. Dawn Berlitz was having her eighteenth birthday. From this day on, she would be an adult. But she certainly didn't feel like one. On the surface, her life was like a dream: her family was rich and she lived in a big house at the outskirts of Sandgem Town, in Sinnoh. But her parents were terribly overprotective and wanted to have full control over Dawn's life. Dawn already had a job and a future ready for her: she would probably venture into the field of science, probably to become Professor Rowan's assistant. While she would probably had to study first, Dawn was already given a job as Rowan's field assistant. This basically meant that Rowan had given Dawn a PokéDex, and it was her job to fill it with entries of at least 150 Pokémon. This would require a lot of traveling, so her parents were against the idea.

But, Dawn was independent, and moreover, very headstrong, so her parents had to give up and allow her to become Rowan's assistant. Before that, they merely asked Dawn to participate in an old ritual which involved climbing on top of Mt. Coronet to pick up a certain flower. Dawn had never heard of this ritual, and indeed, this was merely a red herring. Dawn was told that she would meet two bodyguards wearing a white and a green scarve at the foot of Mt. Coronet, and the bodyguards would merely make sure that Dawn would be safe at Mt. Coronet. In reality, these two bodyguards were hired to follow Dawn around night and day to make sure she didn't get to any trouble, get hooked up with any suspicious men, spend too much money or would somehow smear the Berlitz name. For protection, Professor Rowan gave Dawn her starter Pokémon, Piplup.

As Dawn left her house in Sandgem towards Mt. Coronet, her parents laughed at their own scheme, believing that it couldn't possibly fail. Except that it did.

**...**

At the exact same time, in Twinleaf Town, only a short walk away from Sandgem Town, two Pokémon Trainers were ready to begin their own tale of interest. Twinleaf Town, the small and incredibly dull town in the middle of nowhere in Sinnoh didn't have much to offer for these two boys, two best friends, Lucas and Pearl. Lucas was a calm and friendly, but somewhat slow and stupid individual, while Pearl (being a man despite his feminine name) was his complete opposite. While Lucas was calm and a usually liked and sensitive individual, Pearl was quick-moving, impatient and always in a hurry. He was also seen as a braggart by some, and others dislike his rudeness and the habit of crashing into people and obstacles. Unfortunately, Pearl's trail of thought wasn't as fast as he was himself, and while Pearl liked to make sarcastic remarks, he didn't always think them through.

Despite their differences, those two were best friends, if only because there really weren't anyone else living in Littleroot Town, as it had only four houses anyway. These two boys visited Sandgem Town, where they received their starter Pokémon. Lucas chose a Turtwig, the grass-type Pokémon, while Pearl's choice was a Chimchar, the fire-type. As they both hated extensive backtracking and pointless wandering, they decided to head towards Mt. Coronet. Before that, Professor Rowan gave the duo one last request. Both Pearl and Lucas received a PokéDex so that they could also fill them with entries about Pokémon. Knowing that it was cold at Mt. Coronet, Lucas put on his world-famous white scarf. Pearl made fun of Lucas' white scarf, telling that it made him look 'gay', then wore his own, ugly green scarf.

Well, one could easily guess where this was going. Dawn met Lucas and Pearl at Mt. Coronet, believing that they were assigned as her bodyguards. Lucas and Pearl (mainly Lucas) played along in order for Lucas to get to know this rich chick better. Hilarity ensued, kind of. And what happened to the real bodyguards? They were probably buried under an avalanche or something.

We'll get back to this story later. Now, to Kanto…

**...**

It was spring, and Shane had spent a few weeks at his lovely home in Viridian City. Alone. Bored. His parents tried to urge him to get a job or at least somehow move into a new apartment, but Shane rejected those offers and told his parents that he was still 'soul-searching'. In a way, Shane felt like Jesus: after all, he was going to live at home until his thirties, and whenever he actually did something, it was considered a miracle. He kept thinking about a lot of things, surprisingly, but the thing he wanted the most was to get to New Bark Town and see if Kris still remembered him. But he had stored Meme, and his restored Heracross, Fredrik, to Ferguson's, leaving him with only Shrew, Droid and Tropius, the latter being used mainly for transportation.

But, during one particularly boring day (May 12th, to be exact) Shane was called to visit Professor Oak's laboratory. Apparently, he had something important to say. Well, semi-important at least. Or quasi-important. Since he had nothing else to do, Shane agreed to come visit Oak, and slowly walked along Route 1 to Pallet Town. When he arrived to Pallet and walked to the laboratory, he was quite surprised to see others in front of the lab as well. At first, Shane only saw two people who he wanted to avoid meeting at all costs: Timmy the bird keeper, and Damien Zachowski.

"Hey, Shane! Over here! Shane!"

"For Beelzebub's sake… hi, Timmy, long time no see."

"It sure has been a long time" Timmy said, as enthusiastic as ever. "You like my new haircut?"

"Oh yeah, you have a Mohawk now!" Shane said, not even noticing Timmy's radical black hair at first. "It's, uh… horrible."

"Thanks" Timmy said, having apparently heard something else. "Gee, I wonder, why Professor Oak called us in here today. Think about it! Us, of all people! Shane? Shane?"

Shane had stopped listening to Timmy several minutes ago, but something distracted him even further when he saw someone approaching the laboratory. All descriptions would be unnecessary: Shane could recognize Kris a mile away. She was casually strolling towards the laboratory, apparently having called there as well, and seemed to be (positively) surprised upon seeing Shane.

"Oh, hi! It's been a while, hasn't it?" Kris greeted, without bothering to say hello to Timmy or Damien.

"Mgftlz" Shane mumbled, being unable to think of a witty phrase. "I mean, uh… you were called here too?"

"Yeah, but I'm not going to explain it to you in detail, because, truthfully, I don't know what Professor Oak wants either. But it must be important, and relevant to the plot."

"Let's hope so. This story has been moving rather sluggishly" Shane said.

"Hey, shut up!" Damien snapped, having been eavesdropping the conversation from afar. "Breaking the fourth wall hasn't been funny for a long time, not in this story, at least. I mean, this life."

This metafictive debate was stopped by Professor Oak, who stepped in and called everyone inside his lab. The four stepped in, and the first thing they saw was a table, with four electronic encyclopedia-like gizmos on it. Naturally, they were PokéDexes. But for what purpose?

"I'll tell you" Professor Oak said. "As you all probably know, I have been working on a complete encyclopedia about Pokémon for a while now. But those stupid bastards keep discovering new Pokémon all the time, I can't keep up! There are still Pokémon left that I don't know about. And they live in the Sinnoh region, the region known for its slightly cold temperature, the various mountains and the exciting myths and legends related to it. It also has eight more gyms and a Pokémon League, in case someone is interested."

"Oh, trust me, I am!" Kris said, rubbing her hands together in excitement. "What's the assignment?"

"Hang on a second, Kris! Just how many different species of Pokémon are there? In the world, I mean?" Shane asked.

"Hmm… about 500, I think…" Oak replied.

"500? OK, that's it, this commercialization is just too much!" Shane complained. "I can't be expected to memorize every possible Pokémon!"

"Well, anyway, that's what I'm asking you four to do! It has been almost four years since I told Red to complete the PokéDex for me, and he did, or at least, I thought 146 was the complete number of Pokémon in existence, minus legendaries, of course. Now, my assistants all over the world have gathered info from approximately 350 Pokémon or something like that. The remaining Sinnoh ones are a complete mystery to me, still, so you four need to go to Sinnoh and fill the PokéDex for me! If you need help, my friend Bill, the Pokémaniac, is currently in Sinnoh, attending some sort of nerd conference."

"Oh, you mean Comic-Con?"

"No, some sort of PC developer convention. I don't know, they all look the same to me. And by same, I mean 'ugly'."

"OK, pops, leave it all for me" Damien bragged. "After all, my skills in the field of Pokémon catching are unmatched, and with the help of my Fearow, I'll get to Sinnoh in no time. See you later, suckas!"

Damien grabbed a PokéDex from the table without bothering to read the manual, then stormed out from the lab. A few seconds later, the rest of the group could hear as Damien's Fearow soared to the sky, as Damien was apparently serious about going to Sinnoh. Encouraged by this, Shane decided to go a well, and he, along with Kris and Timmy, also grabbed a PokéDex and prepared to leave.

"Oh, hey, you, the guy with the Mohawk! Wait a minute!" Oak said.

"He noticed!" Timmy chanted. "Yes?"

Shane and Kris stuck around too, wanting to hear what Oak wanted to tell Timmy.

"You four weren't actually the only ones I called" Oak said. "Just yesterday, that friend of yours, Leaf, visited my lab."

"Oh, really…" Timmy said tensely. "And?"

"Well, I gave her the same job I gave to you and gave her a PokéDex as well. So, keep an eye out, and you might meet her in Sinnoh. Anyway, there's also something else I wanted to tell you about. She was accompanied by this strange, quiet and threatening red-haired guy. Leaf told me the guy's name, but I can't remember…"

"Wait, the guy wasn't called 'Silver', was he?" Kris asked cautiously.

"Yes, Silver, that's it!" Oak said.

"Oh, great…"

"Hang on a moment" Shane said. "My memory deceives me often, and it all seems hazy to me, but for some reason, I think that Silver disappeared when I was in Johto. Yeah, he disappeared to something beyond our existence, probably getting stuck in some sort of time loop."

"Maybe you just ate contaminated yoghurt again?" Kris suggested.

"Could be…"

"Who is that Silver anyway and what is _Leaf_ doing with him anyway?" Timmy asked with a hint of jealousy.

"Well, we don't really know him well, but he seems to be a thief of some kind. A cruel, twisted individual. But he also showed signs of redemption" Kris explained.

"Redemption my ass" Timmy said with an uncharacteristically mean tone. "If I know that guy, which I don't, he has probably kidnapped Leaf or something."

"I don't know, Timmy" Oak said. "If anything, Leaf seemed to lead the way. I don't think that Silver fellow even said anything to me…"

"Who cares what you think, old man? Leaf has been kidnapped, I know it, and I'm going to save her so she can finally see that I'm not a loser!"

Shane and Kris both tried to reason with Timmy, Shane telling Timmy that Leaf was a ho anyway, but Timmy refused to listen and, after getting out of the lab, he hopped on his Pidgeot and ordered it to fly towards Sinnoh. With that, Kris and Shane were left alone again.

"Well, Sinnoh awaits!" Shane said.

"Yeah, I just hope that it has more storyline potential than Hoenn, which ended up being quite brief for us anyway."

Shane called out his Tropius, and then climbed on its back, but it seemed that something wasn't right, since Kris looked at Shane quite expectantly.

"Yes?"

"Aren't you forgetting something?" Kris asked. "I don't have a large flying Pokémon in my disposal, so…"

"Sure, hop on. It looks like fate has decided that we need to go there together, huh?" Shane suggested, albeit with no reaction from Kris as she mounted Tropius. "By the way, you can hold on to me when we're flying."

"Please, I'm not going to even touch you. I'll just hold on to your Tropius. And besides, a gentleman would never suggest anything like that."

"Well, I think it's obvious that I'm not a gentleman!" Shane remarked. "OK, Tropius, to Sinnoh! See you in Sinnoh, bitches! And by bitches, I mean just people in general, not the ladies living in Sinnoh, because I have no reason to start hitting on them or anything."

During Shane's lengthy monologue, Tropius soared into the sky as well, heading towards Sinnoh, which was located to the northeast from Kanto, in a relatively long distance. But Shane and Kris had all the time in the world. Their story was close to its conclusion, and the loose ends would probably be uncovered in Sinnoh. Probably.


	32. To the stars above!

**Chapter Thirty-two: **_**To the stars above!**_

The eccentric trio comprised of the blue-haired lady, Dawn, the dim, sluggish and generally nice trainer Lucas, and Lucas' best friend, the impatient and feisty trainer Pearl were coming down from Mt. Coronet. Pearl was obviously quite annoyed by Dawn's presence, as he was found commenting on Dawn's shallowness and constant chattering quite often. Dawn also refused to show herself to the boys unless she looked her finest, which meant a lot of waiting around. For now, the group was arriving to Oreburgh City, where both Lucas and Pearl would get their first gym badge. But before that, the boys had to listen to Dawn's constant chattering about pretty much everything:

"…but you don't believe what she did after that! So, I said to her…"

Lucas listened to Dawn's talking very intensely, occasionally nodding to signal that he understood, but Pearl kept constantly sighing and tapping his foot in annoyance. He wasn't very happy about Dawn's presence at all, but at the Pokémon Center, Pearl decided to finally give the unpleasant truth:

"Listen Dawn, there's something you should know about us!" Pearl said, abruptly in the middle of another conversation at the Oreburgh City Pokémon Center.

"What's that?" Dawn asked, taking her eyes off a poster that she was admiring.

"Dude, stop, you're totally ruining this for me!" Lucas whispered, but Pearl ignored that.

"Dawn, we're not actually bodyguards or anything like that. We (and by 'we', I mean Lucas) lied to you, sorry. We just happened to wear similar scarves as those guys, and then we didn't have the heart to tell you the truth!"

"Oh, well, no biggie!" Dawn replied cheerfully, much to Pearl's and Lucas' surprise. "You see, I've discovered something even better. Pokémon Contests! They're just made for me. I don't think I have the energy to just fill the PokéDex with entries, so I need something to keep me going with that. I'm going to become a Coordinator!"

"Hey, that's great, my mom's a Coordinator, you know!" Lucas said. "And… you're going to travel with us, still, right?"

"What? I don't know. My parents, who were real prudes, by the way, assigned bodyguards for me even though I didn't want them. Gee, they must really be worried sick. Oh, well, I'm an adult now, so they have to live with it. So, I guess I could go alone…"

"Oh…" Lucas sighed, being rather displeased by this, and Dawn seemed to realize this.

"But hey, cheer up, you two can enjoy my presence for a long time. The nearest Contest Hall is in Floaroma, and I need to catch some Pokémon before that."

"Dude, if she's coming, then I'm not coming" Pearl said. "I'll challenge the Oreburgh Gym alone and head straight to Eterna City then, because that chick is not going to slow me down. Later, Luc!"

Without even bothering to say goodbye to Dawn, Pearl ran away from the Pokémon Center, presumably to head straight towards the Oreburgh Gym in order to challenge Roark, the rock-type using gym leader. Lucas was not pleased to see his friend leaving, but he knew that Pearl would eventually run back to him with nonexistent his tail between his legs. Instead, Lucas was happy to have a pretty girl like Dawn traveling with him. It was too bad that Lucas couldn't say many intelligible phrases in Dawn's vicinity, but he tried.

Lucas took his time wandering around the Oreburgh Mine at first, searching for new Pokémon to capture. He still made it to the gym and defeated Roark on his first try, using not only his Turtwig, but also his two new Pokémon: Machop and Shinx. With these Pokémon in his arsenal, Lucas could continue his trip with Dawn, heading to Floaroma Town next. After going through a short hike through Route 204, Lucas and Dawn arrived to Floaroma Town, which was rather different, when compared to the gray, depressing and rocky nature of Oreburgh City. Floaroma Town was smaller, but it was filled with colorful and vivid-scenting flowers and had relatively nice people living there.

As Dawn disappeared to the Contest Hall, Lucas was free to explore various parts of the town. Being Lucas after all, it didn't take him long to wander away from Floaroma and to the outskirts of the little town. Lucas stumbled to the local power plant, the Valley Windworks. This large building, surrounded by big, white windmills harnessed energy that it then distributed all around Sinnoh. Needless to say, sabotaging the place would cause a blackout all over Sinnoh. And yet, Lucas didn't seem to notice the screams and noises coming from the Valley Windworks as he walked to the general direction. Thinking he could pass the time inside the power plant, he stepped in.

But even Lucas noticed that something was wrong with the Windworks when, instead of mechanics or lab coat-wearing scientists, the Windworks were overrun by strange men and women wearing black and white spacesuit-looking outfits, and they all had light blue hair, rounded and cut short. The people stopped their activities, which involved tying up the power plant's workers, and one of them, dressed similarly but having a slightly darker and different-looking hair approached Lucas.

"Um… may we help you?" the man asked.

"Well, I don't want to disturb, I'm just visiting Floaroma Town and decided to pay this place a visit, I have heard a lot about it, y'know" Lucas said casually whilst the spacesuit-wearing mooks dragged the tied-up workers away. "What's going on here? I don't think it's casual Friday, since it's… Tuesday…"

"Oh, that, allow me to explain. My name is Saturn. Here is my card" the man added and gave Lucas a white card with a big yellow G printed on it. On the other side, 'Team Galactic' was written to it in red letters.

"Team Galactic?" Lucas asked.

"Yes, we're a subsidiary of the Nintendu Corporation and, needless to say, we're quite influential in the area of organized crime, extortion, racketeering, pimping and hot dog distribution. We decided to take advantage of the ninth section of Business Takeover Law, which you probably know already."

"Sure…"

Lucas was quite confused, but this was Saturn's exact plan. Saturn knew he could just talk Lucas into going away so the group could continue their activities. Saturn continued:

"Our last fiscal year was kind of a disappointment, so we're expanding, and decided to start from the Valley Windworks. The local employees did not appreciate our generous offer. But we need electricity to power our complex machines, but you look smart enough to realize that."

"Well, I do look smarter than I am" Lucas said. "I'll, just… leave you to it, then. Bye!"

"We hope to see you again. OK, bye, go now!"

Saturn tried to push Lucas out of the building, but at the door, a blonde-haired man running incredibly fast bumped into them. It was Pearl, who was once again in a hurry, and after panting for a while, he finally managed to say what he was going to.

"Lucas! Wait! These guys… are trying to… they're the bad guys!"

"This polite guy here?" Lucas asked. "Come on, they're just a… well, I don't know what, but they gave me their card. See? Shiny…"

"Geez, Lucas, how dense can one person be?" Pearl retorted. "This is Team Galactic, the biggest criminal organization in existence. They practically have assets in every town. And they look awfully evil too!"

"Well, they do have incredibly bad hairstyles…"

"You rats!" Saturn hissed. "You could have just played dumb and gotten away with this, but no, you had to waltz in during this carefully planned and expensive operation. Well, if that's the case, prepare to die!"

Saturn grabbed a Poké Ball from his pocket and sent out a blue, frog-like bipedal Pokémon. Now that Lucas had a plot-convenient PokéDex, he could just scan the creature:

"_Toxicroak. The Toxic Mouth Pokémon and evolved form of Croagunk. Its knuckle claws secrete a toxin so vile that even a scratch could prove fatal_" Lucas read.

"Right-o, a poison-type, then" Pearl commented and grabbed his own Poké Ball. "Just so you know, Lucas, I have caught a whopping amount of more Pokémon along the way. Watch and learn! Geodude, go!"

Pearl chose his own Pokémon, the rock/ground-type Geodude, knowing that it could just easily use Magnitude or something to knock out the Toxicroak. But Saturn was faster with his attacks:

"Toxicroak, Brick Break!"

Toxicroak was too fast for the heavy Geodude, and slammed the Geodude to the wall of the Valle Windworks, knocking it out with a single shot.

"Oh, so that ugly thing knows fighting-type moves as well…" Pearl pondered. "I better write this down."

"'_Watch and learn'_ was it, Pearl?" Lucas asked.

"Shut up, and do something useful instead!"

"You two must be amateurs" Saturn commented. "Infighting is something that ruins even the best team. And I'm growing quite bored of you. Come on, troops, help me out here! Troops?"

Saturn turned around. During his battle with Pearl's Geodude, every single Team Galactic grunt had been frozen solid by something lurking behind the window. After recovering from his shock, Saturn was outraged:

"Who did this?"

"Just me." said a voice coming from nearby, but unnoticed by the others.

Lucas and Pearl managed to dive to the ground when a long, cream-colored sea serpent-like Pokémon crashed into the power plant through a window, using its colorful tail to slam Saturn to the ground. To get information from this magnificent Pokémon, Lucas scanned the thing:

"_Milotic, the Tender Pokémon, and the evolved form of Feebas. This breathtakingly beautiful Pokémon that lives on the bottom of large lakes and has the power to becalm emotions of anger and hostility_."

"Whoa, these entries sound like they've been written by a Poképhile or something…" Pearl commented. "Did that Milotic just say 'just me' or did I imagine that?"

"No, I said that."

Lucas and Pearl turned around to see Milotic's trainer, a tall, young woman with long, blonde hair and black clothes. While Lucas and Pearl had mostly lived under a rock during their life in Twinleaf Town, they could instantly recognize Cynthia, the champion of the Sinnoh Pokémon League.

"That's… Dude, it's that chick, the champion!" Lucas mumbled.

"Yeah, I can see her, stop pointing at her, dumbass!" Pearl snapped. "Uh… thanks. Nice work with that Milotic."

"It was nothing, I'm always looking forward to kicking some Galactic ass" Cynthia said and recalled the Milotic to its Poké Ball. "You should see my strongest Pokémon, Milotic even pales in comparison compared to that. Not that I want to imply that you're not great, Milotic…" Cynthia added, looking at the Poké Ball apologetically.

"Well, it can't hear you, it's in its ball" Pearl said.

"Well, whether it can hear me or not, I still don't want to make it feel bad" Cynthia said, but Lucas and Pearl didn't seem to understand, so she moved on. "Who are you two?"

"I'm Pearl, and this is my friend, Lucas" Pearl said before Lucas could even think about what to say. "How did you know we needed help?"

"Team Galactic has been quite active during the last few days. Which is strange, considering that they have been on the down-low for a long time. They are usually smarter than this, they don't just run into places and take people hostage. For years, we have been suspecting Team Galactic for various crimes, but haven't been able to collect proof. But this is good, I think we can-"

Cynthia stopped talking, and tried to grab a Poké Ball, seeing that Saturn had recovered and was running away. But as Saturn had gotten too far, Cynthia decided to give up.

"Damn, the Commander got away… well, at least we have these popsicles here" Cynthia said, referring to the frozen Galactic grunts. "It was nice to meet you and save your asses, Lucas and Pearl. I wish I could stay and chat, but I'm quite busy."

"Yeah, being a Champion must be hard work" Pearl said, but Cynthia didn't react to Pearl's obsequious flattering.

"Well, not really, and I only got the job because no one else wanted to" Cynthia said calmly. "If anything, my day job takes a lot more time. I'm researching the myths and legends relating to Sinnoh, and I'm also… well, I can't tell you, but let's just say that I'm a researcher. And right now, I need to go. Be seeing you!"

Cynthia turned around and walked away, and Pearl even admired Cynthia's walking, while Lucas didn't really see what the fuss was all about; to him, Cynthia seemed like an everyday person who Lucas could easily beat, Milotic or not. Although right now, he needed new Pokémon. Lucas then turned to Pearl.

"How did you know I was here?" he asked.

"I didn't" Pearl replied. "But I had to come here because I heard about Team Galactic's involvement and their attempt to take over the Windworks. So I rushed here, and you happened to be here as well. Kind of a coincidence, huh?"

"Yeah, I guess."

"But hey, you don't seem to be with that obnoxious chick anymore, so I guess we can travel together again. I was just in Eterna City, and I got a second badge, by the way, so we can go through that so you can get the badge. Then we need to catch some more Pokémon, I already have five, and then-"

"Hold it, motor-mouth" Lucas said.. "First of all, don't call her obnoxious, I like her. Second of all, she's at the Contest Hall, now that she's going to be a coordinator and stuff."

"Oh, man, you need to dump here. I don't like traveling alone, but I prefer that to traveling with someone like that."

"Hey, come on, Pearl, I really think I have a chance with her!"

"Chance, you wish!" Pearl scoffed. "While I was at Eterna, I did some snooping at the Internet café, and I googled 'Dawn Berlitz'. It's no wonder she wears fancy clothes, has diamond-encrusted Poké Balls, had two bodyguards waiting for her and considers us inferior to her. That girl is worth millions of whatevers! Her family is probably the richest in Sinnoh! She doesn't need us, she's just probably using us. Or, more accurately, she's using _you_!"

"Hey, she might occasionally be self-centered, obnoxious and vain, but I also see beneath that" Lucas said. "She can also be sweet and… yeah!"

"Look, Luc, I didn't want to say it like it is, but… you don't have a chance with her. You're poor. She's rich. Get over it. Let's ditch her here in Floaroma and just continue!"

"No!" Lucas said sternly. "Why should I always follow you, Pearl? I think the reason why we have been best friends for all these years is because you can't get any other friends! That's why you don't like Dawn, either! You can go on alone, but I'm staying with her, and I don't care what you say! Good day!"

Pearl made no attempt to reason with Lucas, simply sneered at him and rushed away in his normal, always-busy style. Lucas returned to town, and saw Dawn sitting at the stairs of the Contest Hall, praising her Piplup.

"…you were magnificent, and I'm going to buy you lots of food and jewelry and… hey, Lucas! Where were you, I though you were going to ditch me or something?"

"I… of course I wouldn't do that" Lucas said. "Did you, uh… did you get the ribbon?"

"Uh, did I ever. Check this out!" Dawn said loudly and showed Lucas her Normal Rank Ribbon. "That was too easy. Piplup was awesome back there, she showered the Contest Hall with Bubblebeam and the sun's refection from the bubbles was just amazing. Still, I feel I need more Pokémon than just Piplup…"

"Uh, yeah, that's what I thought, too. I have befriended Turtwig, Abra and Shinx, and they're great, but I think I need more than that. Of course, I don't want to just capture and enslave them, but..."

"Yeah, but not now, come on, I need something to eat." Dawn said, and Lucas wasn't sure if Dawn had even listened. "Oh, and I also need to wash my clothes and get my hair done. Come on, let's go someplace to eat, I can pay for your meal, of course, being rich and all. And then we could talk about _my _Contest strategies and I also need to buy some more stuff, so you can help me carrying them. Oh, and I forgot to tell you, I saw this really good-looking guy at the Contest, but not that you care about that, so I'm moving on. Anyway-"

Lucas partially listened to Dawn's chatter, nodding occasionally. He sighed, and believed that Pearl was, unfortunately enough, right about Dawn. But unlike Pearl, Lucas wasn't going to give up. Even if things seemed to go to hell…

**...**

During the crazy adventure of Dawn, Lucas and Pearl, another traveling duo had reached Sinnoh. They had set camp to the foot of Mt. Coronet, and they were packing up their stuff, as they were going to travel as far as possible in Sinnoh the next day. But this duo wasn't the usual bumbling duo we've seen before, but this consisted of a surly, red-haired guy and a brown-haired, happy-go-lucky girl. Silver and Leaf. As Leaf packed her stuff and Silver stared at the fire, Leaf decided to finally see if Silver was ready to tell why he was so insistent on coming to Sinnoh:

"Silver… I'm not sure if this is the good time to ask, but we may not get a second chance. Why are we here again? I mean, why did you decide to come with me when Oak gave me the PokéDex?"

"It's… well, at the risk of sounding clichéd, I'm saying it anyway" Silver explained, being completely different and a lot nicer than ever seen before. "There's nothing else in my life besides my dad, as he is the only one alive, at least. Thing is, I don't know who he is, since he abandoned me and my mother when we were kids."

"Oh my God… I didn't know that…"

"Well, that's the precise reason why I haven't told you before. We have been friends for a while, but I didn't want to upset you or anything."

"No, no, go on."

"Anyway" Silver said. "Before, I couldn't have been cared less, but the moment I stepped into that portal I told you about, I realized I needed to find out who he is, as that will set my life straight again. It's hard to explain, but I just know it."

"I'm quite interested in this 'portal' deal, but I won't ask you about it again" Leaf said. "So you think your father is here?"

"I have been following the clues for a while now, and if he's not here, then at least, I will be able to deduce who he is and where he is now. All I know is his mother, my grandmother, was obsessed with the legendary Pokémon Mew… you know about it?"

"I have heard stories about it, yeah, go on" Leaf said.

"Well… that's it. But since then I have collected some more clues and I know that not only he has lived here, but he has entered the Pokémon League here and also did some 'business' here, but that's all I know."

Both of them were silent, Leaf giving Silver a chance to reminisce for a while. After few seconds of silence, Leaf started talking again:

"Well, now that we're opening our hearts and stuff, I also have something on my mind, as I haven't told you everything either. I didn't come to Sinnoh merely for the PokéDex stuff."

"I have known you quite long, so I thought that was coming" Silver said. "So what's the real reason? A tragic background story? Backstabbing, adultery, gambling debts?"

"Nothing like that, my childhood was just fine" Leaf said. "My adulthood so far, not so much. I broke up with my boyfriend, that Timmy guy I told you about, because he was an obsessive jerk. Then I was going to become a researcher, and me and a friend of mine were going to stun the scientific community and those old coots in the Academy with our discoveries. And then she got killed, right here in Sinnoh, around Route 224, along with two others. Rumors say that a Suicune did it, but I'm not sure… nevertheless, without her, I couldn't do research so I got into Pokémon training instead. Professor Oak is now paying me to fill this PokéDex, so I get by, if only barely. Anyway, I'm going to find out who killed her."

"But what if the Suicune did indeed kill her?" Silver asked.

Leaf thought about the answer for a moment, then simply replied:

"Then I'm going to kill Suicune."


	33. Can't live with 'em, can't kill 'em!

**Chapter Thirty-three: **_**Can't live with 'em, can't kill 'em!**_

May 22nd: _"Wowza, time does go fast around here. It seems like it was only ten days ago when we arrived to Sinnoh, and that would be true, because it indeed has been ten days. Kris has been rather active in terms of capturing new Pokémon, because not only did she capture a Staravia just a while ago, and then she got a Pokémon egg from some dude. Why the hell haven't I caught any new Pokémon? I'm only carrying Shrew, Droid and Tropius with me now. Anyway, Kris already earned one badge in Sinnoh, which means that she has about eighteen badges now, which his admirable. We're now approaching Hearthome City, which, as the name implies, is the heart of Sinnoh, where everyone gathers. It's also the biggest, and even has enough houses to store those poor, homeless people in. I mean, I have seen cities that had fewer houses than it had people! Horrid!"_

As Shane wrote his log, Kris occasionally yelled at him to dodge trees and rocks and similar objects, since Shane was very focused with his writing. Kris allowed him to write, and for two good reasons. One, Shane didn't talk so much when he was writing, and two, Shane had promised Kris that if he would some day make a story out of his scribbles, he would give 3% of the income to Kris. During Shane's and Kris' neverending walk through Sinnoh, Kris had learned to tolerate Shane and his various quirks. And, similarly, Shane had learned to tolerate Kris' occasional hostility, cynicism and occasional mood swings that ranged from depressed to violent. Sometimes, when Kris was unhappy for whatever reason, Shane tried to cheer her up with his ever so witty jokes, but those made Kris more disgusted than happy. At least they had some effect.

Just as the duo was walking along Route 208, approaching Hearthome City, Shane saw a strange little orange Pokémon that had a yellow collar around its back. With his new gizmo, the PokéDex, Shane could scan the Pokémon, but as the PokéDex couldn't talk or anything (that would be stupid) Shane had to read the scanning results out loud:

"_Buizel, the Sea Weasel Pokémon. It has a floatation sac that is like an inflatable collar. When it dives, the floatation sac collapses_."

"These bits of trivia are really useless…" Kris said. "Well, we need to go, come on, I need to keep this egg warm… and it's really heavy!"

"Keep your hair on" Shane said and grabbed an empty Poké Ball from his pocket. "I haven't caught a Pokémon since… well, it's been a few months. I think. Anyway, that Buizel seems like a good add to my collection!"

"What are you going to do with it? You don't even battle!"

"No, but I have been thinking… the largest Contest Hall in the region is in Hearthome City, and all the coordinators from Sinnoh usually gather around there. New contests are held every day. Maybe I should, you know… catch that Buizel and enter it in a contest."

"A contest?" Kris scoffed. "Isn't that, kind of… girly?"

"Hey, don't be so prejudiced."

"I'm not, I'm just, uh… Well, OK, maybe I'm thinking a little too conservatively here, but _you're_ the one who claimed that some day, the Japanese are going to take over the world and force us all read comic books the wrong way."

"And I'm right, trust me. But enough about that. Buizel, you're mine!"

Doing the coolest pose he could, Shane threw a Poké Ball towards Buizel… which ended up missing, as Buizel immediately dived to safety and dodged the Poké Ball.

"Remember, you have to weaken the Pokémon first" Kris reminded.

"Yeah, yeah, I always forget the little things…" Shane muttered. "Droid, go!"

Next, Shane unleashed his Magneton, Droid, which had a good track record when it came to occasional battles with random encounters.

"Now, remember, Droid, don't hurt that Buizel too much, that would be inhumane. I just want to catch it. Tackle!"

Droid moved towards Buizel as fast as it could, but once again, the speedy Buizel simply dived underwater, occasionally resurfaced to taunt Droid, then dived again, much to Droid's annoyance, as Magneton couldn't survive in water.

"Damn it, that thing is mocking us. I didn't want to come to this, but… Droid, use Thunderbolt on that pond!"

Even Droid seemed hesitant to do so, but nevertheless, it zapped the pond, which caused Buizel to go unconscious, as evident when it floated back to the surface. While he didn't feel good about it, Shane threw a Poké Ball at the Buizel, and this time, successfully caught it.

"Yes! Got it! Thanks, Droid, you can return! Now that I have this Buizel, I shall call it… Otto! Like Otto the otter. Aren't I creative?"

"Well, your attack certainly was" Kris said, genuinely surprised. "It would be obvious to a normal person, but I'd never thought _you_ could figure that out. Hopefully you didn't hurt that Buizel too much."

"I hope so too, but I think it's just paralyzed" Shane said, looking at Otto's new Poké Ball. "I'll heal it when we get to Hearthome. Come on, Kris, last one in Hearthome is a… oh, screw it, I'm too tired to run. Can you carry me?"

"Hell no!"

"Oh, I get it, you're not strong enough" Shane taunted.

"You're going to regret those words…"

**...**

As Kris and Shane dangerously approached the peaceful Hearthome City, Dawn and Lucas were seen exiting the Hearthome City Gym. Lucas' newly evolved Luxio and Grotle struggled against the ghost-type Pokémon of the gym leader, Fantina, but they nevertheless overcame their obstacles and defeated this strange gym leader. She wore odd purple dresses and spoke broken English whilst spouting occasional outbursts of French. Of course, it took Lucas a while to realize that she was French, as first Lucas believed that she was from Guatemala or something. Nevertheless, Lucas had three badges now, but even though he was happy, he couldn't help thinking that Pearl was probably making even more progress than he, most likely making it to the Pokémon League faster than him.

During the trip towards Hearthome, Dawn had caught various Pokémon as well. Her Piplup had evolved into a Prinplup, and even though it lost most of its cuteness appeal, Prinplup was a good competitor and earned Dawn her second ribbon in Eterna City. Besides that, Dawn had also caught a Roselia and a Swinub. With a healthy water-grass-ice combination, she was sure she could make it far in the contests.

And that confidence would be required. Even though Dawn had an incredibly lucky streak in her first two contests, the upcoming Hyper Rank Contest in Hearthome would be full of expert coordinators that would most certainly mop the floor with Dawn. But she was ready, and before the contest would start, Lucas was forced to listen to Dawn's endless talking about how she would beat this contest as well, and would only be one ribbon short of entering the Sinnoh Grand Festival - wherever it was. For now, she needed as much information about her future competitors as possible. Dawn and Lucas took the quickest possible route towards the Super Contest Hall.

**...**

After Dawn and Lucas had found the Contest Hall, a strange duo was seen entering Hearthome City: Kris and Shane had arrived, but instead of walking, Shane was carried by Kris. While Kris was sweating profusely and her back was aching, she refused to give up, just so she could prove a point to Shane: that she could carry him all the way to Hearthome.

"Well…" Kris panted. "Here… we are…"

"Wow, I never thought you would actually make it, I guess I owe you one hundred whatevers" Shane said, not caring how the people passing by stared at this strange duo. "Now come on, march, we still need to get to the Pokémon Center. Then the Contest Hall, and then… well, I'll think of a sight along the way."

"Uh, not that I care or anything, but I think my back is breaking…"

"Oh, what's the matter, are your feminine little legs tired?" Shane asked.

"Screw you, you're heavier than you look!" Kris grunted.

"Hey, it's all muscle, I swear. You just can't see it! Come on, march!"

Kris wasn't the type who would give up, even in the most ridiculous situations, so, despite having to give Shane a piggyback ride, bravely walked all the way to the Contest Hall, where Kris then promptly threw Shane on the floor and collapsed herself. Shane let out a few swear words (that naturally couldn't be repeated in this story) before getting up.

"Get up, Kris, you're embarrassing us both!" Shane said. "OK, well I'm going to sign up for a contest. I got a Contest Pass in Hoenn, even though I never actually competed in anything, but I think I can still apply to some rank."

Shane walked to the counter to sign up, and Kris decided to be quiet until she would get her hundred whatevers so she could taunt Shane. While Shane sighed up, Kris leaned to the wall to catch her breath. She then admired the view from the window: Hearthome City sure was a beautiful place. It was clean, friendly-looking and had various popular sights, like the Pokémon Fan Club and Amity Square. It was also very crowded, as there were people, townspeople and tourists alike, pushing and shoving each other as they walked across the street. Most people inside the Contest Hall were in line to sign up to the Contest, except for one girl, about the same age as Kris, who walked around and looked around her like she was missing something. This brown-haired girl wearing a white hat and red shirt and eventually walked to Kris.

"Hi, sorry to bother you, but I'm looking for a friend of mine" the girl said. "This guy, with red hair and beady eyes."

"No, sorry, haven't seen anyone like that" Kris panted.

"Dang! That guy is really impulsive, you see, and very hot-headed. I'm worried that he has gotten himself into trouble…"

"Yeah, men are like that, huh?" Kris said.

"Yeah…" the girl replied, and even smiled a little, but still looked worried. "Well, thanks anyway. Bye!"

"See you around!" Kris said.

As Kris was still a bit out of breath and the hot weather made her a little dizzy, she wasn't really thinking during that conversation. Only a few minutes later Kris realized that she indeed knew someone with red hair and beady eyes, but it was most likely a coincidence, so Kris shrugged it off. A bit later, Shane walked up to Kris, waving around a piece of paper.

"Yeah, I'm going to be competing soon!" Shane announced. "Come on, there's still two Contests before mine, so I need to see if there are any good strategies. I also healed Buizel, and I think it's ready."

"Shane, you just caught that thing!" Kris said. "You really think you can pull of some stunts with it?"

"Who cares if I pull any stunts, it's a Normal Rank Contest, I'll win anyway!" Shane said. "It's like this contest was made just in order to toughen coordinators up for the higher ranks, where things are more difficult. Come on, we need to get some good seats!"

**...**

Dawn and Lucas had squeezed into good places at the audience. Dawn had signed up to a Hyper Rank Contest, but she still had to watch one more contest before hers would start: a Normal Rank Contest, which was currently ongoing. Several impressive displays were put out, but one coordinator in particular seemed interesting to Dawn.

"Hey, Lucas, check out that stupid-looking guy with the Buizel!" she said.

"Uh… oh, yeah, that one, what about him?"

"Well, he is leading the contest, but on the other hand, he keeps completely messing up and forgetting the rules. I believe he's just pretending, y'know. And that Buizel seems to obey him only half of the time, but it's quite an impressive individual!"

"Yeah… I agree!" Lucas said without really understanding; after all, to him, contests were just something he needed to attend because Dawn was present. While his mother was a coordinator, he had never actually watched his mom in any contests.

The Normal Rank Contest was over rather quickly thanks to the incompetence of the other coordinators present, and the announcer was about to say who won:

"So, the winner of this relatively boring Normal Rank Contest, the seventeenth contest of the day is… I can't figure out the name. Uh… Joe B. Cool? Well, that's what he wrote on his application so, Joe B. Cool from Kanto, everybody!"

The guy with the Buizel got what he wanted: his first ribbon ever. When the guy and his Buizel rushed into the locker room, Dawn realized that her contest was about to start, so she rushed into the locker room, almost forgetting Lucas, who, not knowing what to do, rushed after Dawn. While Dawn needed to change clothes, she also wanted to talk to the Buizel-guy. Eventually, Dawn found him, praising his Buizel who jumped around happily and occasionally spinning its tail. The guy was talking to a girl with dark brown hair, wearing a white jacket and blue jeans.

"Well, Shane, you made a fool of yourself out there, but you did it. I was wrong, so… sorry" the girl admitted.

"Yes, I've been waiting for those words!" the guy said and frantically jumped into the air, excited about his first victory in a while.

"But don't go all the credit, you know. That Buizel is quite spunky, I admit it… that Ice Beam was just something else, which is strange, because I don't think Buizel learns Ice Beam naturally…"

"Yeah, I know, Otto is just that awesome!"

"Er-hem!"

Dawn coughed a bit to grab the attention of the Buizel-guy and the girl with him, and this worked.

"Sorry to interrupt, I just wanted to congratulate a fellow coordinator!" Dawn said. "You did good out there, and I don't say this often. Of course, I would have done some things differently, but I was impressed. Hi, I'm Dawn, Dawn Berlitz."

"Yeah, and my name is not Joe B. Cool, I'm Shane, this is Kris. _Nice _to meet you" Shane said alluringly, as if he was trying to hit on Dawn. This didn't work.

"Uh… likewise!" Dawn said cheerfully. "Hello, Kris. Are you a coordinator too?"

"Oh, God, no!" Kris said. "I was just giving some advice to Shane, but he saw fit to ignore them. Well, he won that contest anyway. And for some reason, there's only one locker room."

"Weird, isn't it. This place could really use some remodeling anyway. My daddy works in the decorating business, he's rich by the way, and-"

"Here we go again…" Lucas sighed, standing behind Dawn and looking uncomfortable.

"Oh, right, I haven't introduced this guy yet" Dawn said. "This is Lucas, a friend of mine. He's a trainer. Really into Pokémon and stuff. He's a bit nuts, though. He doesn't just throw Poké Balls at Pokémon to catch them, he seems to be very insistent on talking them over and making them join him, something about ethics or whatever."

"I like him already!" Kris said and shook hands with Lucas.

"Me too!" Shane said and pushed Kris away in order to shake hands with Lucas as well.

Lucas seemed confused but pleased about the attention he was getting, but this friendly meeting was interrupted when two familiar faces decided to drop by. A wannabe, white-haired macho guy wearing black sunglasses and a brown-haired girl: Brendan and May. May had changed her usual red clothes, though: she now wore an orange shirt and had a green bandanna.

"Kris! And Stan! What a surprise!" Brendan said and took his sunglasses off in an unnecessarily cool manner.

"Not a pleasant one, though" Shane replied quietly. "I mean, hi! My name is Shane, by the way, Brendan. A surprise to see you here!"

"Are you kidding?" May asked. "New gyms to conquer, new ribbons to get, we had to come. Well, Brendan would have preferred staying in Hoenn, but… "

"Quit your complaining, I said I was sorry!" Brendan said.

"So… you two are like, officially a couple now or what?" Shane asked.

"Ssh! Don't agitate them. They'll tell us their life story!" Kris hissed.

"Uh, scratch that part, then" Shane said. "Um, well, I guess we need to introduce… this is Brendan, and May, two _friends_ of ours from Hoenn. And this is Lucas and this is Dawn. We… just met a few minutes ago."

Everyone shook hands and seemed to get along well, and after pleasantries were exchanged, the announcer's voice echoed in the locker room, telling that the Hyper Rank Contest was about to start. Kris, Shane, Lucas and Brendan returned to the audience, while May and Dawn glared at each other, realizing that they were competing against each other.

"So, you're a Coordinator as well, huh?" May asked.

"That's right, and _I'm_ going to get my third ribbon here!" Dawn said.

"We'll see about that, after all, _I_ have more experience in this thing than you" May retorted. "And I have a feeling that me and my Pokémon are going to dominate this Contest. You see, I have this!"May took out a Poké Ball and called out a Pokémon: a seven-foot tall, bipedal bird-like thing that spewed fire.

"Yup, that's my Blaziken" May said. "Bet you don't have anything like that?"

"Maybe not, but don't take me too lightly, you b… bragger" Dawn said, biting her tongue to avoid saying anything too nasty. "I might as well have a trick or two up my sleeve. And if we're done with this pathetic trash-talking here, then let's compete."

"You're on, then" May said. "_May_ the best lady win. Hah!"

**...**

Leaf, who was running down Route 212 towards south had no idea about the fancy contests in Hearthome City. She was still looking for Silver, who ran off somewhere. She was quite worried about him, after all, she knew how emotional Silver was, deep down. After being worried sick, Leaf finally came across a fancy mansion along Route 212 guarded by several policemen. Silver standing in front of the mansion, reading a sign. Leaf angrily walked up to him.

"Silver! What the hell? I thought you had died or been kidnapped or something! I had to ask about you all over Hearthome"

"Huh? Sorry, Leaf…" Silver said without taking his eyes off the sign posted near the mansion. Leaf took a closer look as well in order to read the sign:

"_Trophy Garden_" Leaf said. "Well, what about it? Why did you come here?"

"Well, those policemen told me that this place has been here for over 50 years, so it naturally was here when my dad visited this place. The owner might have met my father."

"But this guy has met lots of people, he's quite wealthy" Leaf said as he looked at the mansion. "Do you really think he can remember it?"

"Well, actually, I have reasoned this pretty carefully. I know that my dad occasionally used fake names, the most used being 'Antonio Ancotti', so I'll just ask about that. I also know the years when he was in Sinnoh, because they were two years before I was born. So, my dad was in Sinnoh about 24 years ago!"

"I guess that _kinda_ makes sense..." Leaf pondered. "Shall we go in?"

"We shall!"

Leaf and Silver stepped into the Trophy Garden, and admired the fancy house filled with expensive paintings, antique and busy-looking workers such as maids and butlers. At the back, there was an exit that apparently led into the garden itself, and the place itself was full of rooms, which seemed overly fancy, considering that only one person actually lived there. This man, accompanied by his elderly butler and a bodyguard, was an old, jolly man with gray hair and moustache, Mr. Backlot.

"I've heard about this guy" Silver whispered. "He's nice, but he is rumored to be a compulsive liar, so don't take his word for everything."

"Welcome to the Pokémon Mansion, the luxurious Trophy Garden" Mr. Backlot announced and shook hands with Leaf and Silver. "I haven't had visitors in weeks, so you have no idea how happy I am to see you, and no doubt, you came here to listen to my stories about my beautiful garden. Why, just yesterday, I saw this adorable Porygon, waltzing around the garden…"

Backlot's butler sighed and walked away towards the garden, most likely to hide a Porygon there to cover up Mr. Backlot's lies, considering that Porygon weren't native to Sinnoh, and one couldn't find in the wild at all.

"…and you would imagine how surprised I was, but then again, all Pokémon love my garden. Why, just two days ago-"

"Actually," Silver interrupted. "I was going to ask you a few questions. I understand you had plenty of visitors here over the course of fifty years?"

"My, the stories I could tell you…" Mr. Backlot said, filled with nostalgia. "Why, I remember just thirteen years ago, when I was eating Krabby on toast with Michael Jackson…"

"I didn't come here to listen to your non-sequiturs, Mr. Backlot" Silver said impatiently, and Leaf pinched him slightly to control his anger. "I'm sorry, I mean, your garden is beautiful, I'm sure, but may we see the guestbook?"

"Why, I don't need a guestbook, you silly boy" Mr. Backlot said, as jovially as usual. "I remember every meeting I have had over the course of fifty years, except for that one meeting when I passed out after drinking too much sangria with Jim Belushi…"

"Yeah, well, anyway, do you remember meeting a man called Antonio Ancotti, who was presumably from Johto?"

"Antonio Ancotti… why, yes, I do remember!" Backlot said, and both Silver and Leaf were quite interested "The first time I met him, it was about twenty-four years ago. Antonio was a young, idealistic man, who came to me for advice, after all, I have experience in about everything. We ate Tauros beef that night, and I talked about my garden and he listened, which made him a great guy. Few days later, Ancotti became the Sinnoh Champion!"

"The Champion? Really?"

"I would not deceive you, young man. Now listen, damn it! Anyway, he was the Champion for ten years until he was beaten by the young Cynthia who is Champion today. After his loss, he came to me again, but this time, much different than usual. He was not only older, but he seemed more… dark. Cynical, even. We did business together, and I promised to sell him some of my most rare discoveries, since I was on a tight budget back then. He even offered to buy the mansion from me, but I refused, because this has been my home for as long as I can remember. It was around that time that Antonio told me that his name wasn't really Antonio Ancotti. He did seem to have something on his mind, so I told him to let it out, since I also have a degree in psychology. He told that he had lied about his name, left his family in Johto and turned to the path of crime. I tried to get more out of him, but then he just left."

"And you haven't seen him since?" Silver asked.

"No…" Mr. Backlot said, honestly surprised that Silver and Leaf had actually listened to his story. "But, he also slipped something that might reveal his real name."

"What? What?"

"Well, the names of all Sinnoh Pokémon Champions have been written to the large white rock at Route 224 for about two hundred years. The trick is, they required the Champions to write their _real_ names, because the rock apparently knows if you lie. Sounds like BS to me, but hey, all myths so far have turned out to be true. Anyway, if you want his real name, go there!"

"Thank you! You have no idea how much you helped me!" Silver said. "Come on, Leaf! To Route 224!"

"Hang on, I don't tell my great stories for free!" Mr. Backlot shouted when Silver and Leaf ran away from the mansion. "Hey! Come back!"

**...**

Back in Hearthome, the Hyper Rank Contest was turning wild, and, as usual, we cut straight to the finale, where unsurprisingly, May and Dawn were ready to confront each other in the battle round. May used her Beautifly while Dawn went with her Swinub. Despite Swinub's inexperience, it did well against Beautifly, managing to hit it with ice-type attacks. But May's superior experience allowed her to take advantage of Beautifly's flashy techniques. At first, May told Beautifly to fill the arena with Stun Spore, then told to strike Swinub with Solarbeam, which knocked out Swinub and gave May a truckload of points. May had won the contest, which meant that she had six ribbons now.

During the aftermath of the Contest, Dawn was far from angry, however, now that she actually had someone who she could actively work against. Kris, Shane, May, Brendan, Dawn and Lucas eventually gathered at the Contest Hall's parking lot, where they agreed to go their separate ways.

"So, Kris and Shane, me and Brendan are going to Sunyshore City next, we're going to check out the sights!" May said cheerfully, holding her new ribbon in the air just to make sure everyone saw that. "Wanna come?"

"Um, maybe later…" Kris said. "I think I have had seen enough of you two in the previous arc. Besides, I'm going to Canalave City next, they say that the gym leader there is pretty tough. I could use a challenge."

"Fine, be a buzz killer" May said. "What about you two?" she added, looking at Lucas and Dawn quite wishfully.

"I need to go to, uh… what was it? Oh, yeah, Pastoria City" Lucas said. "There's a new gym, and I need to check out the Great Marsh as well."

"Well, don't drown in the mud" Brendan said.

"What?" Lucas asked, having missed this jab.

"Nothing, nothing, you carry on your little adventure, sport" Brendan said condescendingly. "Since I already have conquered the gyms in Hoenn and won the Pokémon League there-"

"No you didn't, you liar, that Wally kid did!" Kris said.

"Well, my victory was kind of a moral triumph" Brendan said. "Come on, May, I feel I could take on Volkner, this region's toughest gym leader. I just hope he doesn't get traumatized when I mop the floor with his Pokémon. Hah!"

As May and Brendan left, Kris tried to hold herself from throwing a rock at Brendan.

"Damn, I hate that guy!" Kris grunted.

"Yeah, and he doesn't seem to be too caring when it comes to Pokémon" Lucas said. "That reminds me, Dawn, I know you don't think like I do, but could you please refrain from catching any Pokémon at the Great Marsh? It's their natural habitat after all."

"Hey, I do what I want to do" Dawn said. "And you can visit Great Marsh yourself, I don't want to get mud all over my clothes! I'm going to check out the Contest Hall in Pastoria. Later, peeps!"

While May and Brendan headed to the east, Lucas and Dawn headed south, and Kris grabbed her heavy-looking backpack, ready to head towards the west. But as she walked towards Canalave, Shane started walking to the north, much to Kris's confusion.

"Hey, where are you going?" she asked. "Canalave is over here!"

"What, are we going there _now_?" Shane asked. "I thought we were going to check out Veilstone City next. There are these cool meteorites there that I want to see. Maybe there's alien DNA in them or something…"

"Alien DNA? Please! Besides, you promised that we would go to Canalave next, now that you got your little ribbon and all!"

"Hey, it's not the size that counts!" Shane shouted. "And who says I need you to, accompany me anyway, Kris? I'm a big boy, I'll do what I want, _when_ I want. So, I'm going to Veilstone next!"

Shane grabbed his stuff and his new ribbon, which he attached to his shirt, then started walking to the northeast. Angered by this, Kris yelled a last minute goodbye after Shane:

"Fine, be a jerk, then! I will _not_ be seeing you!"

Shane didn't respond, so Kris grabbed her backpack and her even heavier Pokémon egg. But as Kris touched the egg, she could feel it shaking, and suddenly, it started trashing violently. Kris could hear muffled sounds coming from inside the egg and the shell started cracking.

"Oh, crap, it's hatching!" she said, looking around her in case someone could help her. "Well, I think this is going to be easier than delivering a baby. Come on, push! Breathe! Break out of that egg!"

As Kris had hoped for, the egg hatched and out came a relatively large (for a baby Pokémon), teal-colored Pokémon that looked like a bear cub with large eyes that kept staring at Kris, with its mouth wide open. Interested at this new creature, Kris picked it up, although it was quite heavy, so Kris wasn't too surprised about the egg's weight anymore.

"Hi, there! Welcome to my Pokémon bunch!" Kris said to the Pokémon, that seemed to be quite happy to be with Kris. "I just hope you don't eat too much, because I'm running a little short on money and I need to feed my other five Pokémon as well. Let's scan you, shall we?"

Kris took out her PokéDex and scanned the thing, reading the info out loud:

"_Munchlax, the Big Eater Pokémon. It wolfs down its weight in food once a day, swallowing food whole with almost no chewing._"

"Munchlax, eh?" Kris said, taking out a Poké Ball in order to carry the Pokémon more conveniently. "Wait a minute, 'Big Eater'? What am I going to feed this with? I would gladly make it eat Shane, but he's not around, so… I guess I need more money. OK, Munchlax, get into the ball. And why the hell am I talking to myself?"

**...**

As Kris struggled with her new baby Pokémon, desperately looking for money to buy food for it, Shane spent his days walking towards his next destination, Veilstone City. Along the way, he passed through a lovely little town called Solaceon Town, which had a Daycare Center for Pokémon and everything. For a moment, he even felt like staying in the town, but unfortunately, the local newspaper was also made there. To get away from these liberal media representatives, Shane spent only one night in Solaceon before moving on. He kept walking towards north, until he came to an intersection. Since had forgot to buy a map, he was naturally quite confused. He had two alternatives: walking along Route 210, like he was doing now, or turning to the potentially dangerous and/or annoying Route 215. As he kept wondering about the situation, he noticed an odd sight: a big swarm of Psyduck just standing there, blocking Route 210.

It looked like Shane's only alternative was to turn to Route 215, but his curiosity got the better of him and he walked up to the Psyduck. They looked just as usual, holding their heads like they had constant headache, but they refused to move and just stood there. As Shane looked at the Psyduck, a woman suddenly appeared behind him.

"Hello."

"Eek! Don't kill me, I'm an unarmed man!" Shane screamed and quickly turned around.

But instead of a creepy stalker, Shane saw a tall, good-looking blonde woman wearing black clothes. After Shane recovered from his shock, he was ready to talk:

"Please, don't walk behind me like that, I've had plenty of unpleasant experiences in one lifetime!"

"Sorry about that" the woman said. "I just couldn't help to notice that you were stuck because of those Psyduck. I'm Cynthia."

"Oh, and my name is… Patrick Bateman. But you can call me Shane. Nice to meet you, Cynthia."

"Uh… likewise!" Cynthia replied. "Now, if you need to keep walking this route, I can help you with that."

"Listen, I don't need help from no chicks, I'm a man of principles. Sort of."

"Well, I _am_ the Champion of the Sinnoh League" Cynthia said

"No need to advertise that fact… well, _I_, on the other hand, am a member of… the Legendary Pokémon Society!" Shane said as he took out his ever-present trainee badge, showing it to Cynthia, despite the fact that it got him into trouble the last time. "What do you have to say about that?"

"Oh, what a coincidence, I'm also an LS-member" Cynthia said, showing her own badge. "Funny, I have never seen or heard of you before…"

"Yeah…" Shane said, now feeling rather uncomfortable. "Well, I joined only recently. But my story clears out. Just ask Lance. Or Morty. Or those others, seriously. You know, but don't ask about my real membership or anything."

"No, no, I believe you, the truth is, the Legendary Society has had worse members" Cynthia said, and Shane failed to notice the insult. "We have had this obnoxious trainee, Eusine, working for us for about a year. He has failed to produce any results, though."

"Yeah, people like that can be a real pain. So, you were about to help me with my Psyduck problem?"

"Yes, use this" Cynthia said and gave Shane a bottle that contained weird purple liquid. "This should cure the Psyduck from their headache. It's typical that humans would just pass these Psyduck without bothering to wonder if there's anything wrong with them…"

"I think we've heard the 'humans are bastards' chestnut already" Shane said. "But thanks anyway. Anything else?"

"Indeed, there is, but this is _extremely_ important. Take this!"

Cynthia took another object out of her backpack and gave it to Shane. But this one was a shining, glass chunk that looked like a diamond, only that it was the size of a football. Shane was so mesmerized by its glow that he almost failed to listen what Cynthia had to say about it.

"That's the Adamant Orb, the second half of the two priceless jewels that have a connection with the myths and legends of Sinnoh. The museum in Celestic Town has the other half, the Lustrous Orb. It is crucial that this thing is delivered to the museum, where it will be held under heavy surveillance. Got that?"

"Yeah, sure, Celestic Town, got it" Shane said, having only listened half of Cynthia's talking while he was hypnotized by the Adamant Orb that he slowly placed in his pocket.

"Good, now I need to go. Be seeing you, Shane!" Cynthia said. "Togekiss, let's go!"

Shane even failed to see when Cynthia sent out a large, white flying Pokémon, Togekiss, that she then used to fly away. After Cynthia was already far away in the horizon, Shane continued walking, this time towards Celestic Town, having completely forgotten about his meteorite-involving side quest.

But lurking in the bushes, watching Shane from a distance, were two women wearing skin-tight, white, spacesuit-resembling outfits with the yellow G-symbol on them. The two women, the purple-haired Jupiter and the red-haired Mars were in radio contact with their leader:

"Master, The Bringer of Contentment here" Jupiter whispered to the radio. "One of the Band of Six has been sighted. He is heading to Celestic Town. He has been seen with the Public Enemy, and the Adamant Orb is in his possession, additional instructions requested. Over."

"Hey, tell the boss that I'm here too!" Mars said.

"Shut up, Mars, I'm talking to the boss" Jupiter snapped to Mars, but their boss soon responded:

"_Master here. Relay information to The Bringer of Aging. I'm in Celestic Town right now. If that one was really sighted with the Public Enemy, then don't do anything to him. Just let him come here. What about the other five? Over."_

"Well, we saw them in the Heart of Sinnoh, and started following this one from there" Mars said, grabbing the radio from Jupiter. "Then we told the grunts to follow the others. Also, permission to stop talking in code? Oh yeah, and over."

"_Permission denied. Someone might be listening in. Proceed as planned. Over._"

"Permission to change partners?" Jupiter asked after grabbing the radio back from Mars. "Over!"

"_Permission denied. You and The Bringer of Wars will be a team until this ends. Your next destination will be the one planned. Over and out_."

"Yeah, roger that…" Jupiter sighed. "Well, Mars, as horrifying as the idea of continuing to work with you is, I have no choice. Let's go!"

"If only you would have let me ask the boss, then we wouldn't have to work together and I wouldn't have to tolerate your company, Jupiter" Mars said. "But, like you said, let's go already. The boss will take care of that loser."


	34. Galactic battles

**Chapter Thirty-four: **_**Galactic battles**_

A while ago, this entire wacky cast of odd characters got together in Hearthome City before going their separate ways. Dawn and Lucas went to Pastoria City, where Lucas would get his fourth badge, and Dawn would get her third ribbon. Dawn's confidence and shallowness took a dent when she lost to May, but she was slowly regaining that, and as her Pokémon grew stronger and as she taught them new techniques and bought new items, like accessories, she would be able to win a ribbon at the Pastoria Hyper Rank Contest. This meant that she was only one ribbon short from getting to the Grand Festival.

Lucas was doing quite well, too. While Dawn was in the middle of her contest, Lucas wandered around the Great Marsh. He ran into a particularly interesting and friendly Croagunk that didn't seem to be afraid of humans. But instead of capturing it, Lucas merely admired the thing from a distance, and even talking to it, while being unsure about if it could actually understand him. After his trip at the Great Marsh, Lucas headed to the Pastoria City Gym and managed to defeat the gym leader, Wake, or as he preferred to be called, Crasher Wake.

Next, Dawn and Lucas went to Veilstone City, and Lucas got to challenge Maylene to get his fifth badge. Lucas was making good progress, but Pearl always seemed to be one step ahead of him. This wasn't surprising, considering Pearl's habit of running into places and doing things rather neurotically. This was his biggest strength, but also his biggest weakness, as Lucas was about to discover.

Currently, Lucas and Dawn were in a bus, heading to their next destination, Canalave City, where Lucas would get his sixth badge. There was no Contest Hall in Canalave, and the next one would be in Snowpoint City in the north. While Lucas was sure that Dawn would leave him and head to Snowpoint alone, he was surprised when Dawn announced that he would be sticking with Lucas. Still, it was pointless to wish for any romantic encounters, as Pearl was completely right. Dawn was still herself, a vain, spoiled rich girl, while Lucas was a slightly dimwitted country boy.

Dawn and Lucas couldn't get to Canalave straight, because there was a lake between Jubilife City and Canalave City. Instead, the duo would head to Floaroma Town and take a ferry there. Neither of them even knew about the existence of a ferry, but in Pastoria, a strange man with a slipping accent gave them a ticket to a "special ferry". Neither Dawn or Lucas even thought about refusing for a second, especially since the ticket was free. The bus would be in Floaroma in a few minutes, and while Dawn slept next to him, Lucas was listening to the radio:

"_…to which the Governor then stated: 'I thought she was eighteen'. Police investigation is still ongoing. In further crime-related news, special agent Looker from the International Police has given a new statement about the suggested triple homicide that occurred at Route 224 about a year ago. The suggested involvement of a legendary Pokémon has not been ruled out of the question, but Mr. Looker is assuring us that the research has not stopped yet. The public has been rather vocal about their criticism relating to the murder investigations, but Mr. Looker has told his critics that 'You try and solve a triple homicide, biatches'._"

"Dawn, wake up" Lucas said as he pushed Dawn gently, only partly listening to the news. "We'll be in Floaroma in five minutes!"

"Mmhmm…" Dawn mumbled. "Five more minutes…"

"Yeah, that's what I said, come on, rise and shine. I mean, take your time, I'll just listen to the news and then I'll pack your stuff as well, so… enjoy your five minutes."

Lucas plugged his earphones back in so he could listen to the news without disturbing Dawn:

"_And finally, some domestic news. Famous and celestially handsome Pokémon trainer Damien Zachowski has seen fit to tour our wonderful region. After getting to the top eight in the Hoenn league, he has now been conquering gyms around this region and giving out various interviews. We caught Damien at the Jubilife TV station, where he announced that he would definitely win the Sinnoh League and would most likely get to challenge the Elite Four. Only time will tell, but this reporter is definitely rooting for Damien. Can I get my money now? Thanks…"_

"OK, here we are!"

Lucas and the tired Dawn stepped out of the bus with their stuff, being the only ones who got off in Floaroma Town. The duo followed the instructions in the ticket, and eventually found the ferry they were supposed to take. It was anchored around a dilapidated dock and it was quite far away from town. But being as dense as they were, Dawn and Lucas didn't notice anything suspicious, merely approached the ferry with interest.

"Ahoy there, _amigos_!" shouted the ferry's captain, a man with a worn-out sailor uniform and an enormous moustache. "You ready to go? I assume you have the ticket?"

"Yeah, we got that from a person who looked quite a lot like you" Lucas said. "Probably a relative of yours or something?"

"_Si_… Welcome aboard!"

"Gee, your boat sure does smell bad…" Dawn said as soon as she got on the boat. "And are we really the only passengers?"

"Uh, yes… we need to give our guests special treatment" the captain said. "These two _hombres_ are in my crew, say hello to José and Pepe. Well, OK, that's enough, boys, get back under the deck and prepare the surprise that we have for our guests here."

"Ooh, a surprise!" Lucas said. "I wonder what that is?"

"I think I'm seasick…" Dawn muttered and started to look awfully green.

"But _mi amor_, we haven't even raised the anchor yet!" the captain said.

"I know, but this boat smells like cat urine!" Dawn moaned and covered her face with a handkerchief. "Please, let's go already. I can't wait to get to Canalave!"

"Well, you're going to be waiting for a long time, _puta…_" the captain muttered. "Boys, raise the anchor! And uh… start moving the ship. And don't forget to talk in sailor lingo."

"Aye aye!"

Apart from Dawn feeling constantly ill and complaining about the boat and the ugly captain, the trip towards Canalave went fine. Lucas reminded Dawn that at least the trip was free, but this didn't really cheer Dawn up. Anyway, both Lucas and Dawn let their Pokémon to breathe the fresh sea air, Lucas letting out his Grotle, Luxio, Machoke and his newly caught blue Gastrodon. Dawn, in the meantime, let out her Prinplup, Piloswine, and Roselia. Lucas' Gastrodon and Dawn's Prinplup jumped into the water and swam next to the boat as Lucas watched and Dawn tried to avoid throwing up.

Meanwhile, in the captain's cabin, the barbate captain took out his captain's jacket, showing that he had a striped shirt and black pants. With a mask and a bag with a dollar sign, he could look like your everyday burglar. He turned on the radio and contacted his master.

"Boss, it's Miguel here, and never mind the code nonsense right now" the captain said. "I have two of them here, the girl with the blue hair and the guy with the red cap, just as planned. What should I do?"

"_You shall do like I told you, Miguel_. _I didn't hire you for nothing. Have you got the explosives in place?_"

"Yes, I do" Miguel said, looking nervously behind him to makes sure that Dawn and Lucas weren't listening. "But boss, I'm actually liking this captain thing, and I really wouldn't want to blow this can up…"

"_If you want your reward, you'll do as I say! Make sure that you're far enough from Floaroma but not too close to Canalave when you blow it up. Just have it running on a timer and get the hell out of there with your guys. Head to Iron Island, Charon will give you your additional instructions. Got it?"_"Yeah, boss, I got it. Over and out. Damn, how anal can one guy be?"

"_I'm still here. You need to turn off the microphone before hanging up_."

"Oh, right. Sorry, boss."

Miguel rushed below deck to tell José and Pepe to start the bomb, then, after making sure that Dawn and Lucas were otherwise occupied, the three rushed to the lifeboats and paddled away from the ship as fast as possible, heading towards Iron Island.

After a few minutes, the bomb was still ticking, ready to explode any moment now. Lucas was blissfully unaware of this, as he was trying hard not to listen or watch as Dawn threw up overboard.

"Uff… I don't feel too good. I hate sea voyages."

"Yeah, I can see that. I can also see what you ate yesterday. Yuck!" Lucas said. "Mind you, don't throw up on the Pokémon. They don't seem to like that very much. Maybe we should recall them?"

"Yeah… Roselia, Piloswine, return!"

"Machoke, Luxio, Grotle, return. And now, for the sea Pokémon. Gastrodon, come on, you have swam enough. Damn, I can't quite reach it."

Lucas tried to stretch his arm, and just as he finally was ready to recall Gastrodon to its Poké Ball, he slipped into something and fell overboard, splashing into the sea.

"Lucas… Where did you go… I'm dizzy…"

Dawn, who tried to stagger to the captain's cabin, accidentally fell overboard as well. Both Lucas and Dawn struggled to keep themselves on the surface, and their Pokémon, Gastrodon and Prinplup, helped them as well as they could. At the same time, their boat just sailed by and continued moving forward without the two.

"Hey!" Lucas said as he spat the excess water off his mouth. "Our boat is leaving without us. Come on, Dawn, we need to get to the-"

Whatever Lucas had to say next, it was silenced. The ship, that had already reached a safe distance, exploded, and flaming bits of the ship flew everywhere as whatever remained of it sank. Without the boat, Dawn and Lucas had to sail on their Pokémon, telling them to swim to the nearest piece of land they saw. Indeed, there was an island in the distance…

**...**

Meanwhile, in Celestic Town…

Shane had just arrived to this peaceful little town. There wasn't much of interest there: no Poké Mart, no gym, no Contest Hall… besides the Pokémon Center and a small amount of houses, there was something quite interesting in the middle of the town: wooden shrine, not unlike the one at the Ilex Forest, and an entrance to a cave, along with a sign that said 'Celestic Ruins'. As Shane watched the shrine, a man who had a bowl cut and wore a white uniform that looked like a spacesuit approached him.

"Excuse me, is your name Shane?" the man asked.

"None other!"

"Great, follow me to the cave, please!"

"Actually, I was going to take this thing to the museum…"

"No worries, the museum is closed, and the person who you needed to deliver the Adamant Orb to is right here in the cave."

"Oh, cool…"

Shane stepped into the Celestic Ruins, and it indeed seemed like a place where an ancient temple once resides, with brick wall pieces and pillars scattered around. At the end of the ruins, a blue-haired, tall man, almost a foot taller than Shane, stood and watched a cave painting quite intently. The man turned around, revealing his disturbing face. While at first, Shane was guessing that the man was about thirty years old, or something, his face made it look like he was fifty or older. He didn't smile or show any kind of emotions, merely gave the man escorting Shane a nod, leaving Shane and Cyrus alone in the ruins.

"Hello there, my name is Cyrus" the man said. "I see you have delivered the Adamant Orb for me. That is very good."

"Uh, yeah, here it is…"

Shane took the shiny Adamant Orb from his backpack and reluctantly showed it to Cyrus.

"But, uh, are you sure _you_ are the one I needed to deliver it to?"

"Absolutely" Cyrus said. "Allow me to introduce myself better. I am currently the vice president of the Nintendu Corporation, or alternatively, Number Two."

"So, who's Number One?" Shane said, trying not to giggle about 'number two'.

Cyrus didn't reply. He glanced at the Adamant Orb before putting it in his pocket.

"Being the Number Two of Nintendu has given me great responsibility, and with that, I have seen fit to reshape this region. Me and my corporation have built most of the houses and libraries you see in Sinnoh. I am also the curator of the Celestic Museum. Of course, since you delivered this orb to me, I can't just let you go without a prize. Here."

Cyrus passed Shane a cheque, that was signed for ten thousand whatevers.

"Wow, thanks!"

"You are quite welcome, but remember, money does not bring happiness. I have come to learn that the hard way…"

"Yeah, whatever, bye Mr. Cyrus!"

For ten thousand whatevers, Shane would probably even sell his own parents and he no longer had any moral dilemmas on giving the Adamant Orb to Cyrus. Naturally, Shane didn't realize what he did as he ran away from the Celestic Ruins and prepared to spend the money on something ridiculously expensive and useless. As Shane left, Cyrus stayed at the ruins and watched at the strange cave painting and talked to himself.

"Hmm… the light in the middle of this painting… it's either Dialga or Palkia. At the Spear Pillar… and these three lights around it. Of course… they are Uxie, Mesprit and Azelf. It makes sense. Or does it? Or maybe my interpretation is wrong and the three lights actually represent Dialga, Palkia and Giratina… and this light in the middle is something else, something more dangerous. No, it can't be! I can't be wrong!"

"Uh, master Cyrus?" the Galactic Grunt in the background said meekly. "The Commanders are in place. Shall we get back to the plan and move to the base?"

"Yes… we shall…" Cyrus said slowly. "What about the Lustrous Orb?"

"The rest of the gang have already taken it. Since that putz sold his one to us, we should have everything we need, right?"

"Not quite…" Cyrus said. "But soon, we will."

**...**

To get away from the flaming wreckage of the boat they used, Dawn and Lucas swam towards the only island they saw: Iron Island. Once a prosperous ore mine, this island has now been reduced to a tourist attraction and a habitat for wild Pokémon. Dawn and Lucas did not know this as they swam to Iron Island and caught the next boat that went to Canalave City. Little did they know that something was going on inside the Iron Island mine…

Iron Island was full of Team Galactic members, all searching something inside while none other than Saturn yelled orders at them:

"Come on, spread out. If Riley got away, the boss will not be happy. No one is supposed to know that we're working here, people. I may be forced to cut down your salary. And the first one to mutter something about going on strike will be kicked out of the team, and I mean it!"

"Save your voice, Saturn. I think I know how to get to this 'Riley'-character…"

This line was uttered by another Galactic Commander, but this man was quite different from the other Commanders. He seemed to wear a black uniform with the G-symbol on it, but he also wore a lab coat which covered most of the uniform. This man was short, overweight and had bizarre, purple hair and strange red glasses. About in his late fifties or early sixties, this strange Commander was frighteningly creepy because of his hunchbacked appearance and blank eyes.

"Well, what do you want, Charon?" Saturn asked.

"Come see for yourself, my young colleague" Charon replied.

Charon took Saturn deeper into the mines, where Saturn gazed upon a stone platform. At first, Saturn thought two Galactic Grunts were welding something, but when he looked more carefully, he saw the grunts giving electric shocks to a small, dog-like Pokémon, Riolu.

"What is this?" Saturn asked. "That electricity is coming off your pay!"

"Fine" Charon replied coldly. "But this Riolu happens to be Riley's, and when word gets out that we have it, he will come running to us."

"Hmph. I guess that's… something" Saturn said. "But weren't you supposed to be looking for Registeel?"

"To be more precise, that was _your_ job, Saturn" Charon said. "Lighten up a little. We have already obtained the steel golem, and those Mexicans who Cyrus hired are putting it on one of the boats."

"Oh… well… do you have torture that Pokémon?" Saturn asked and watched as Riolu was twitching as the Grunts shocked it. Apparently, Charon had somehow shut the Riolu's mouth, possibly in order to keep it from howling in agony.

"What's this? Is the cold-hearted Saturn feeling _empathy_ for this Pokémon?" Charon taunted. "Be this torture or not, I can assure that it is purely for the sake of academic purposes. My research will benefit the entire organization."

"That, or you're a twisted bastard!" Saturn noted. "And I wasn't joking about the electricity! I'll go tell part of the grunts to take the Registeel to Snowpoint City, then I need to head to Lake Valor, and then-"

"Tell me, Saturn, do you even know why our beloved leader Cyrus needs those Pokémon at the lakes?" Charon asked suddenly.

"What? I don't know… why does that matter?"

"As a matter of fact, do you even have the slightest understanding about what's going on and what our organization is doing?" Charon asked from the confounded Saturn. "Not that I even need to ask this from Team Galactic's second-in-command, but nevertheless…" he added to further annoy Saturn.

"I… well, I know far more than you think, smartass!" Saturn yelled. "And all I hear from you or Cyrus is rambling about some new world order. You tell me, what's that about?"

"Nothing" Charon said. "Pay it no heed. A new world isn't overtly interesting. What of it? If Cyrus is right, then Team Galactic will rule that world. That's when it will be interesting. A chance to enjoy its sweets. I surely hope that our visionary Cyrus realizes his dream… I look forward to whatever our beloved leader has planned atop Mt. Coronet."

"I… yeah, whatever, I'm just working here" Saturn said. "I need to go. You… stay here!"

"You will not see me moving from this spot until said otherwise" Charon said and continued to watch as the poor Riolu was tortured with electricity.

Saturn wasn't sure if Charon was somehow insulting him, but he brushed it away and returned to surface, where he gave his orders to the Galactic Grunts. Then, he gabbed his radio and contacted Team Galactic's boss:

"Cyrus? We have the situation under control at Iron Island. What about those other two?"

"_The Bringer of Contentment and the Bringer of Wars have been successful in their operations. The Rock Golem has been acquired and the Ice Golem will be too, shortly. The two Commander will then proceed to follow the n00b and see if he's any threat to us. For the look of things, he's certainly not, but one can never be sure with a plan as fragile as this one._"

"OK, but can we please stop talking in code? I think everyone has figured out our plan already!"

"_Negative. You can let the others handle the Snowpoint City Operation. You shall now get to Lake #2 as planned. Over and out_."

"OK, whatever" Saturn said and hung up on Cyrus.

**...**

Predictably enough, Lucas had expanded his Pokémon roster quite extensively. Currently, he owned a Torterra, a Luxray, a Gastrodon, a Machoke, a Bibarel and a Nosepass he captured just recently. With these six Pokémon, it wasn't much of a stretch to defeat Byron, the steel-type gym leader of Canalave City. Interestingly enough, Byron was the father of Oreburgh's gym leader, Roark, but he didn't seem to be that much better. Byron himself insisted that he was merely weak from his last battle, which was against a feisty girl with a Feraligatr, but Lucas failed to realize who Byron was talking about.

When Lucas and Dawn tried to leave the city and head towards their next destination, Snowpoint, they once again bumped into the ever-busy Pearl, who was running towards the Canalave Library. Due to the collision caused when Lucas and Pearl crashed into each other, they both fell on the ground, much to Dawn's amusement:

"You should have seen yourselves! Hah, you're all dirty! See you next fall!"

"Shut up, you tart…" Pearl mumbled as he got up, then raised his voice as he 'greeted' Dawn. "I said, hello there, Dawn. We haven't seen in a long time, luckily enough."

"Man, why are you in such a hurry?" Lucas asked. "I mean, now?"

"I was looking for you two, actually" Pearl said. "Not that you would grasp the concept, but Professor Rowan has asked all three of us PokéDex holders to visit him in the Canalave Library. Come on, let's go, get up, Luc! Last one in the library is a Pokémon coordinator!"

"Hey!" Dawn objected, but Pearl was already running away. "You know, Lucas, I don't think your friend likes me. What a jerk! I mean, there's no reason not like me! I am quite perfect in every way!"

"Uh, sure…should we follow Pearl, then?" Lucas suggested.

That they did, and they had to make their way to the top floor of the library, since every other floor had a stereotypical, overly anal librarian who kept shushing them for making too much noise, even though Lucas and Dawn weren't really saying anything. At the fourth floor, Professor Rowan were waiting for them, and Pearl was panting and breathing quite heavily after his extensive running.

"My, the young whippersnapper Lucas and his fair friend Dawn" Rowan greeted the young duo. "Where do the days go? It hasn't been too long since all of you first left the lab with your Pokémon."

"I have no time to reminisce, old man!" Pearl said rudely. "Why did you summon us all here today?"

"Nothing earth-shattering or anything like that" Rowan insisted. "I merely contacted you because of an important discovery. It concerns legendary Pokémon, and most specifically, the so-called 'lake trio', Uxie, Mesprit and Azelf. I have reason to believe that these three are hiding somewhere in the three lakes of Sinnoh, as their name implies. The trick is, we haven't had the necessary equipment to check it out. But now, I believe we - OUCH!"

Without a warning, the entire library started shaking. Rowan, Lucas, Dawn and Pearl were thrown on the floor, books were flying around, tables being knocked over and people around them were fleeing in terror. This earthquake was accompanied by distant rumbling, but before anyone could figure out where it was coming from, the rumbling and the shaking stopped; the earthquake was over.

"Whew! Is everyone OK?" Rowan asked and got up, helping Dawn to get up as well.

"No!" Dawn complained. "I feel like a Haitian!"

"Too soon" Pearl quipped. "Where did that explosion come from?"

"Being a wise professor who has a deep voice and a lab coat, I have reason to believe that the explosion came from Lake Valor. But why? Someone needs to check it out…"

"Hey, I'll-" Lucas started, but Pearl interrupted him immediately: "No need, Luc. _**I'm**_volunteering to check out this predicament. Don't worry, old man. With Pearl Pearlson on the case, you'll find out the cause of the explosion in no time! Cheerio!"

Pearl grabbed his belongings and ran away from the library in his usual style. Lucas and Dawn promised to meet the professor later, as currently, they were busy. Dawn's next contest was in Snowpoint City, and that would also be the place where Lucas would get his seventh badge.

**...**

June 13th: "_Good morning, my dear log. Life couldn't be better for Shane Stephens, yours truly, who will now start referring to himself in the third person. Well, OK, maybe not, but I am extremely liberated. After almost freezing my ass when walking towards Snowpoint City, I had an idea. After all, that nice guy (and certainly no crime syndicate leader) Cyrus gave me ten thousand whatevers. I am rich! So, I just called a helicopter to pick me up and take me to Snowpoint City. And here I currently am, writing this journal. You know, it's amazing that even though it's summer and it's probably ninety degrees back south, this place is constantly covered in snow and it's always cold here. One of life's many mysteries, I guess… Anyway, with my endless supply of money, I bought a nice little cabin from Snowpoint City. The two nice ladies who brought me here also keep me company in this cabin. They bring me food and stuff, which is nice. They keep asking me all sorts of strange questions, though. Anyway, I also paid some of the townspeople to inform me about all people who enter this city, in hopes that Kris would arrive here. I can't wait to tell her 'I told you so', and how it would have been smarter if she would have stayed with me._"

While Shane was comfortably in his cabin, writing his memoirs, Dawn and Lucas had purchased winter clothing that they were going to need in Snowpoint. Immediately after leaving the Mt. Coronet exit, they got stuck in a blizzard that just didn't seem to stop. Dawn and Lucas didn't hear anything they told each other as they walked through the endless snow. They could barely see in front of them, but there was only one road to Snowpoint, so they followed it and tried to avoid any random encounters, since if Lucas would get stuck in a battle and start thinking about battle strategies, they would probably freeze to death.

But thanks to their sheer willpower alone, they made it past the blizzard and arrived to a more peaceful corner of the world. The further they walked, the colder it got, but at least the blizzard had stopped. They were currently walking through the Acuity Lakefront, and were slowly approaching Snowpoint City, when a random person walked up to them. This person, a young woman, didn't seem to be very prepared for the harsh weather, since she didn't have a hat or gloves or anything and didn't seem to mind wearing a short skirt, despite the weather. All she had for protection were a sweater tied to her waist and her long socks. But despite this, she had an almost overpoweringly friendly persona when she spoke to Dawn and Lucas:

"Like, hi guys, and welcome to Snowpoint City! I'm Candice, the local gym leader. Nice to meetcha!"

"Uh… hi!" Lucas greeted, not being used to greetings like this.

"Hi, I'm Dawn and this is Lucas. And excuse me, I have to ask: why are you dressed like a slut even though this place is colder than Rudolph's nuts in a headwind?"

"Dawn!" Lucas hissed. "Be polite!"

"What? I mean, come on, can't you see what she's dressed like?" Dawn asked.

"No…"

"You really are dense. I have to say, I would never wear clothes like that, if-"

"Yeah, sure, thanks or whatever" Candice said. "By the way, you could use some fashion sense yourself, Dawn. Anyway, I only came to greet you 'cuz there's some strange guy in town who wants to check everyone who comes into town. So, please, follow me!"

Despite knowing not to follow creepy or air-headed strangers, Dawn and Lucas did so anyway and followed Candice to the edge of Snowpoint City, where Shane was currently being given a manicure by the other service lady as the other kept feeding him grapes. This had gone on for various hours, and Shane still wasn't full.

"Uh, hey, whatever your name is" Cancide told Shane after stepping into his cabin. "Like, here's two more trainers that wanted to arrive to Snowpoint City."

"Thanks, Candice, you can go now" Shane said. "And hey, didn't I already meet you guys in Hearthome City? You're Benjamin, and that's… Margaret?"

"No, I'm Lucas and this is Dawn, you remember us, right Shane?"

"Of course I do, I was just pulling your chain" Shane said. "Anyway, good to see you here. Sorry for bringing you over here, but I'm trying to impress Kris, whenever she gets here. You probably are going to enter the local Contest here, so-"

"Oh, yeah, now I remember you!" Dawn said suddenly, after being quite oblivious for a few minutes. "You're that weird guy with a Buizel!"

"His name is Otto, and that's Mr. Weird Guy to you!" Shane said. "But anyway, yes, that was me. And yet, you just remember me and not my name, even though I took so much trouble learning your name, Maggie!"

"Dawn" Lucas corrected.

"Yeah, Dawn!" Shane said. "Anyway, I'd like to introduce you to my two lovely servants here. Despite their stripperrific names, they only did this because I'm rich, you see. This is Jupiter, and this is Mars. Really nice gals, and I can't wait to ask them about other benefits, if you know what I mean…"

"Well, what do you mean?" Lucas asked.

"Uh…. I'm not sure…"

"How did you get rich all of the sudden, anyway?" Dawn asked dubiously, with her arms crossed.

"Hey, relax, nothing illegal" Shane assured. "I just sold a priceless artifact to a benevolent corporate executive, a really nice guy, by the way. He gave me ten thousand whatevers, and I'm living the high life."

"Wait, just ten thousand?" Dawn asked. "Hey, I'm no math expert or anything geeky like that, but ten thousand whatevers isn't that much money. Consider for a moment than an ordinary Poké Ball costs two hundred whatevers, and a revive costs about 1500. So, I'd say you have three or four hundred dollars worth of money there."

"What? No, that cannot be…" Shane said nervously. "You're just trying to leech off my moolah, aren't you? I know I'm an incredibly awesome individual, but it's lonely at the top…"

"No, she's right" Lucas said as he browsed through a Pokémon World travel guide. "Your money isn't much good here."

"Let me see that!" Shane said and grabbed the travel guide. "Hmm… _Cruel and unusual punishments_… _Punished by death_… _Hung by his testicles_… Oh no! They're going to repossess my cabin and make stroganoff out of me!"

"May we suggest something, Mr. Shane?" Jupiter said.

"I don't need women to tell me what to do, but sure, I could use some good suggestions."

"The three of you should head to the Snowpoint Temple. Just ask the gym leader, Candice, some instructions. Who knows, you might find something that'll save you from the wrath of the townspeople…"

"What's the Snowpoint Temple?" Dawn asked.

"Just a huge-ass temple in the northern edge of the town" Mars said. "It's even colder in there than it is on the outside, and the place is filled with high-level Pokémon that are constantly trying to kill you."

"Sounds fun!" Shane said. "Come on, Lucas and Dawn. Your gym- and contest-related whatnot can wait. Snowpoint Temple, here we come!"

As Shane grabbed his jacket and rushed out of the expensive cabin with Dawn and Lucas following suit, Jupiter and Mars immediately took off their disguises to reveal the Team Galactic uniforms they wore underneath, and prepared to proceed with their plan. Jupiter grabbed her radio:

"OK, you have the helicopters ready?" she asked. "Good. Yeah, we found Regice. We have it packaged for you. You have the other two? Good. Bring them to the temple as fast as possible. We have some of those troublemakers, three members of that Band of Six, captured at the temple. OK, good. All right, over and out."

**...**

Not having any knowledge about their impending doom, Shane, Dawn and Lucas went to the Snowpoint Gym to seek for Candice. She was reluctant to leave the gym, but Shane held a long speech about how it was important for the city, and Candice allowed to show the trio the way to the temple just to make Shane shut up. Along the way, she also gave Shane and Lucas blue, shiny badges.

"That's, like, the Icicle Badge that I'm giving you two there, but just temporarily, you know" she said. "You guys will need them if you want to get into the temple. Dawn can just say she's with us."

"So why don't I get a badge?" Dawn inquired.

"Yeah, like anyone will believe that a scrawny runt like you would get past me!" Candice snorted. "Like, chill out, you know it's true."

"Calm down, Dawn, you don't even collect badges" Lucas said.

"You just don't get it, don't you? Like, it's the principles. I shouldn't be treated differently. As a matter of fact, I'm richer than all of you combined, so I should be treated as your superior."

"Like, can we weld that girl's mouth shut or what?" Candice asked, and Dawn had to resort to mumbling and hissing her threats.

When the group eventually arrived to the Snowpoint Temple, they admired it for a few moments. The stone temple was quite old and creaky at some parts, but it was still in surprisingly good shape. Whoever built it probably took influences from Greek and Roman temples. While it looked great, Shane couldn't imagine that a hidden treasure or anything like that would be there, considering that it nevertheless had only one, large floor.

"It doesn't look that phenomenal, I know" Candice said as she walked in, while Shane and Lucas flashed their Icicle Badges to the guard. "But recently, some archeologists or something discovered that this place is bigger than anticipated when they found a hidden stairway that leads to creepy underground tunnels."

"That's cool and all, but this place really creeps me out" Dawn said as she shivered and looked around the old temple. "Listen, guys, you do whatever you need to do, but I'm going to find a coffee shop so I can keep warm and possibly see if there are any good-looking waiters. Later!"

Dawn tried to open the door and exit the temple, but the door seemed to be locked. Dawn did her best to try and open the door, but nothing seemed to work.

"Hey! Someone locked us in!" she screamed. "Guys? Guys? Damn it, I'm a fine lady, I can't just kick it or something. Piloswine, do something. Go!"

Dawn grabbed a Poké Ball and unleashed her Piloswine, which seemed to understand Dawn's signals. It crashed into the door, but it still failed to open. Even when Piloswine used its colossal tusks, the door still failed to open. Shane, Lucas and Candice were all focused on trying to find some sort of secret entrance to the underground floors. As Dawn struggled with the door, she suddenly stopped when she heard more distant rumbling, something that sounded like a helicopter.

"Guys! Do you hear something?" Dawn asked. "Sounds like a helicopter, doesn't it?"

"Well, let's check it out!" Candice said. "There's a small window over there."

Shane, Dawn, Lucas and Candice gathered around a small window that was nearly frozen shut. But even from this, they could see three helicopters coming their way. The helicopters were carrying something incredibly large. At first, the group thought they were carrying three very large rocks, but as the choppers got closer, the three were revealed to be golem-like Pokémon.

"Well I'll be darned in heck!" Shane said. "What are those things?"

"Oh, crud! We're having a totally major problem here, guys!" Cancide said and bit her nails.

"Well?"

"You see those three things the helicopters are carrying?"

"They're pretty hard to miss…" Shane said.

"Yeah, well, they are Regirock, Registeel and Regice. Someone has kidnapped them from their hibernating locations and are bringing them here for some reason. And if I'm right, that reason spells doom for us all and junk."

"Poor things…" Lucas said as he glanced at the three golems. "Funny, they don't seem to be struggling too much…"

"Maybe they're still sleeping?" Dawn suggestd.

"Well, what's that super-scary reason why they can't be brought here, then?" Shane asked.

"The master of the golems, Regigigas, is in this temple, under our very feet" Candice said. "Our ancestors sealed that monster here after it totally destroyed everything. They then used some sort of spell or whatever to prevent it from waking up unless the three golems are brought here. Of course, the chances of all three golems popping up here were minimal, so we didn't see this coming! I suggest we run the hell out of here!"

"We can't, you silly tart!" Dawn yelled. "Someone has locked the door from the outside!"

"Well, in case you didn't notice, this temple has no roof" Candice said. "Nice little precaution, wasn't it? Now, if anyone has a big flying Pokémon, we can just fly the hell out of here!"

"And here comes your savior!" Shane announced and grabbed Tropius' Poké Ball from his waist. "Now, if I can just begin the process which will involve me pushing this little button that releases Tropius from its ball so we can fly to safety. And I will do that right about n-"

But this unnecessarily slow operation was interrupted, as the helicopters carrying the legendary golems flew directly to the temple and started hovering over it. As the choppers started descending and lowered the golems towards the ground, the group retreated to the wall and struggled to open the door, but to no avail. As soon as the choppers had landed, two familiar women stepped out of one of them: Jupiter and Mars, in full Team Galactic uniform. They were accompanied by a group of Team Galactic grunts, all looking quite identical with their stupid bowl cuts.

"Oh, hey, my loyal servants Jupiter and Mars who I just met a few hours ago, hi!" Shane greeted. "What are you doing here, dressed as the villains of this story?"

"Shut it!" Jupiter commanded. "Trust me, if it wasn't for Mars, we would have never followed you here and deceived you, but she thought her plan was great. I personally thought it was humiliating!"

"I'd like to see you come up with a better plan, Jupiter!" Mars quipped.

"So, you two were just using me for your villainous purposes?" Shane asked. "That's low! I thought you two were stalking me because you liked me!"

"Don't think too highly of yourself, boy!" Mars said. "I know Jupiter probably has an affinity for weird and ugly men, but I don't, so if you'll excuse me, Team Galactic has a Regigigas to awaken."

"Like, you can't do that, you creeps!" Candice said. "That thing will destroy this entire region if it feels like it. And since our ancestors locked it up into this cold temple for hundreds of years, I'm pretty sure it feels like it!"

"Ah, get rid of those troublemakers, Jupiter, they're bothering me!" Mars said.

"Keep your fake hair on, Mars, I'm doing the best I can, which is something that you can't say" Jupiter said and walked up to the slumbering golems. "OK, I'll choose… Regice! Wake up and attack those people. For Team Galactic, OK?"

As Jupiter clapped her hands, Regice seemed to register something as it started moving. Apparently under some sort of mind control, Regice slowly approached Shane, Dawn, Lucas and Candice. As the other three pressed against each other in fear, Candice decided to step up and called out her Pokémon.

"It looks like this spunky gym leader has to save the day and so on" Candice said. "Glaceon, go! Use Iron Tail on this ugly statue-thingy!"

Candice's Pokémon-of-choice, Glaceon, immediately obeyed, and its blue tail glowed as it attacked Regice, whipping it with its tail. But Glaceon's attack merely bounced off of Regice's sturdy body and Glaceon was bounced back to Candice. Next, Regice prepared its own attack. It zapped Candice and Glaceon with Ice Beam, and within seconds, both Candice and her Pokémon were sealed in a block of ice.

"Looks like she's not so hot anymore, huh guys?" Dawn quipped as Shane and Lucas could only watch Candice's horrible fate. "Now come on, that thing can't outsmart us. Let's kick its ass, if it does have any!"

"I wouldn't recommend that" Jupiter said. "Regice can withstand any of your attacks, and if you get incredibly lucky and knock it out, we have two more Pokémon in reserve. Just stay there and watch as we wake up this Regigigas and you'll be fine. Until we kill you, that is."

So, Shane, Dawn and Lucas watched helplessly as Marsh went straight up to something that seemed like a pair of switches that the group somehow managed to miss whilst examining the temple. Mars pulled one of the switches, and an innocent-looking floor panel moved to reveal a large hole in the ground that apparently led to the underground floors. Next, Mars pulled the other switch, and a platform started rising to the surface. Standing on this platform was none other than the twelve-feet tall white golem, Regigigas, with seven colorful dot-like "eyes" on its colossal body. It had huge limbs, but it didn't seem to have any kind of face, just like with the other Regis. It had obviously been sleeping for a long time, as parts of it body were covered in moss. Everyone watched at this slumbering Pokémon with a mix of fear and respect. Then, Jupiter clapped her hands again two times to wake up Registeel and Regirock.

"OK, you clattering junk collections, march up to your leader!" she commanded.

The three golems obediently walked towards Regigigas, which was several feet taller than any of them. After they had gathered around their trio master, Mars started yelling at the Regigigas:

"Oh, powerful Regigigas, we command you. Now that your trio is together, wake up and smell the ashes. Wake up, and wreak havoc, do what you were born to do. Wake up. I said, wake up! Wake up, you brick!"

"Great job, Mars, you messed up the operation!" Jupiter said as she walked up to the Regigigas as well, forcing Shane, Dawn and Lucas to walk with her.

"I don't know why it isn't waking up. Something is wrong here… you three!" Mars yelled suddenly, pointing at Shane, Dawn and Lucas. "Do something useful! Make it move!"

"Well, we could ask Candice, but I don't know if she can do anything, since she's frozen and all…" Lucas said.

"Shut up, Lucas!" Dawn said. "We're not doing anything for you. Unless you pay or offer us something useful, like a free dinner and tickets to Not The Messiah!"

"Wait a minute… I wonder if this might fix it…" Shane pondered and walked closer to Regigigas.

"Shane! Don't!" Dawn and Lucas yelled in unison.

But Shane ignored the cries of the duo and kicked Regigigas as hard as he could. This seemed to cause a reaction, and slowly but surely, Regigigas started moving. It punched a huge hole into the wall of the Snowpoint Temple, and walked right through it, preparing to go on a rampage all over Sinnoh, making weird, mechanical noises all the while. Shane could only stare at this destruction and utter an immortal phrase:

"Wow, looks like I messed up, huh?"


	35. The Catastrophe, Part 1

**Chapter Thirty-five: **_**The Catastrophe, Part 1**_

The worse had happened. Regigigas was unleashed and it went on a rampage around Sinnoh. After destroying some houses (including Candice's gym) with its powerful Hyper Beam attack, it marched out of Snowpoint City, leaving a trail of destruction and enormous footprints after it. Team Galactic seemed to be quite pleased, as they weren't out to capture Regigigas. They just wanted to use it to catch destruction, or so it seemed. Jupiter, Mars and the Galactic Grunts ignored the other three Regis as they quickly entered their helicopters and flew away from the scene. Leaving the frozen Candice and the now-immobile golems at the temple, Shane, Lucas and Dawn ran out from the temple and gazed at the destruction caused by Regigigas. Even Dawn was quiet, quite contrary to her normal persona. This silence was then interrupted when Lucas' cell phone rang, and without bothering to prolong the silence, Lucas answered.

"Hello there? Yeah. Oh, hi, Pearl! Guys, it's Pearl!"

"Yeah, we heard it the first time!" Dawn said.

"Who's Pearl?" Shane asked, but got no response.

"So, how are you doing, Pearl?" Lucas asked.

"_Listen, no time for pleasantries now, Luc!_" Pearl said, talking really fast and sounding quite edgy. "_I don't care where you are now, but seriously, you need to come to the Great Marsh in Pastoria City, I need some… help! You and Dawn both. And anyone else you can get along!_"

"Why?"

"_Never mind that, just… come on! Please, come on! I can't tell you, but… please!_ _Gotta go!_"

As abruptly as he had begun the phone call, Pearl hung up on Lucas, and Lucas was quite confused, but nevertheless was ready to help his best friend.

"Well, let's go, then!"

"Um, Lucas, we have no idea what Pearl wanted!" Dawn reminded.

"Oh yeah, that. He called and told us to come to the Great Marsh as soon as possible. The Marsh is in Pastoria, though, and we're in Snowpoint, so the trip is going to take quite a while. But hey, Shane, can we use your Tropius?"

"Well, I haven't went through the annual checkup yet, and I don't want to overload it or anything…" Shane said. "On the other hand, I might have inadvertently caused the deaths of hundreds, so I guess we can use it. OK, Tropius, come out!"

As Shane released Tropius from its ball and prepared it so it could fly all the way to Pastoria, Dawn took a few steps back.

"Eww! Are those bananas hanging from its chin?" she asked in disgust.

"Come on, there's no time to be bitchy now!" Shane said. "Hey, what about all that other stuff we need to fix? You know, Candice is still frozen and Regigigas is still causing destruction."

"Nah, someone can take care of those things" Lucas said as he mounted Tropius as well. "Come on, Dawn, get on this ugly Pokémon and let's fly!"

"But… what about my contest?"

"There's a new one held in Sunyshore" Shane reminded, but Lucas looked unsure.

"Wait, what about my badge?" he asked.

"Hey, just keep the Icicle Badge that Candice gave you" Shane said.

"But isn't that cheating?"

"Yeah, whatever, Honest-Abe" Shane said. "I'm keeping mine, and the local gym leader won't be battling anyone anytime soon. Come on, Dawn, let's blow this shithole already!"

"Fine. But I may get sick during the flight" Dawn said, and Shane was starting to regret that he ever met these two.

**...**

"Ladies and gentlemen, thank you for choosing Tropius Airlines, and we hope that you don't lose your lunch when you land."

"Shut up, Shane!"

Thanks to Shane's Tropius, the trio got to Pastoria City relatively quickly. Not bothering to check out what was going on, the trio entered the Great Marsh, even Dawn, who constantly tried to make sure that her clothes wouldn't get dirty, preferring to let Lucas and Shane walk in front of her so that she could walk in their footprints to avoid getting her legs covered in mud. The reason why they had to walk was that the rail was closed, as it was already late and the Marsh was officially closed from the public, even though no one was guarding it, so it was easy to get in. Shane got the short end of the straw, as he had to walk in front of Dawn and listen to her complaining, while Lucas walked ahead, trying to look for Pearl.

"Damn, now I got mud all over my scarf. Shane, don't walk so close to me, you're getting that stuff all over me! No, don't walk too far away, I need you to shield me from all the mud and potentially dangerous Pokémon that might live here! Can't you get anything right?"

"I'm sure your parents were overcome with joy when you entered puberty, Dawn" Shane said. "By the way, I don't think it's the smartest idea to wear a short skirt whilst traipsing through a field of smelly mud."

"But it matches my eyes!" Dawn complained. "Besides, my bag is full of outfits like this!"

"Well, at least stop lifting your legs so high, I'm seeing more than I ever wanted to see!"

"Then keep your eyes on the road, you creep!"

"Hey, could you be quiet back there or something?" Lucas said. "I'm calling Pearl. I can't see him anywhere… Hang on… Yeah, it's me. Listen, we're here, but we can't see you. Where are you? Area 6? OK, we'll be there!"

"Area 6?" Dawn moaned. "And we're in Area 2 now! I can't walk any further!"

"Lucas, I may have to cut off my ears and use them to shut that lady up!" Shane muttered. "Can't you carry her or something?"

"Uh… I'd like to, but I don't have the right shoes for that… Just a little while longer, Dawn! Only… three miles!"

"Three miles? This place didn't seem so big on the map…"

So, despite having to endure the mud, the mosquitoes and the Pokémon that kept randomly appearing, Lucas, Shane and Dawn boldly walked through three miles of marsh before reaching an opening that, luckily enough, didn't have any mud in it, just grass. Pearl was standing completely still at one spot, his eyes shifting back and forth, and he didn't seem to be that pleased about seeing the group, despite calling them there.

"Hi, buddy! What's up?" Lucas asked.

"Lucas" Pearl said, trying to speak as quietly as possible so he was almost whispering. "_Don't. Come. Here."_

"Yeah, OK, I'm coming there!" Lucas said, having completely misunderstood what Pearl had said.

Pearl tried to whisper something at Lucas and waved at him to stay back, but Lucas always had trouble understanding sign language. Shane and Dawn followed Lucas, but as soon as all four were at one spot, the trap was activated; a net appeared from the grass below and grabbed all four into it. Several Galactic Grunts emerged from the bushes, accompanied by the ruthless commander, Saturn, who smirked at his helpless victim.

"I knew it!" Saturn exclaimed, overjoyed by his victory. "Damn, I'm good! I knew that by catching this weasel and using him as bait, I'd nail at least some of the rest of you!"

"What the hell?" Shane shouted, struggling to break the net. "Why are you chasing us anyway, what have we done?"

"Nothing as of yet, but your friend here foiled our plans at Valley Windworks so I've been very cheesed off at him" Saturn explained. "So, everyone who has had contact with him is guilty by association. No, I would just kill you right here by shooting you or something like that, but that wouldn't be cool. Instead, I'm lowering you into that pit of mud _there_ and feed to you that group of hungry Carnivine _there_!"

"Hey, wait a minute!" Pearl shouted. "You said that if I would help you capture these guys, you'd let me off! Come on!"

"Well, it just goes to show you…" Saturn said. "If you're really dumb enough to believe what the bad guys tell you, then you don't deserve to live at all. Now, I have made a useful little system here. Now that the rail has been turned off, the net you are in will move across its tracks towards that group of hungry Carnivine, and it will do that unnecessarily slowly, just so you can enjoy the few minutes before your agonizing death. Also, I spent the whole day trying to think of a clever pun or remark to say when I feed you to these carnivorous plants, but I couldn't think of anything, so… later!"

Laughing his annoying/evil laugh all the way, Saturn left and his cronies followed. At the same time, the net started moving, and indeed, at the end of its road, three hungry Carnivine were waiting anxiously to start chewing on the meat of the four helpless humans who kept struggling to get out of the net, except for Shane, who kept humming his favorite songs and looking around him cheerfully. After several failed attempts to break the net, Dawn started yelling at Pearl:

"Well, thanks a lot, Judas. You sold us out and you were stupid enough to suffer from it, too. I hope you regret this even a little."

"Hmm… I guess I should, but I'm not sure if I do…" Pearl pondered. "I mean, Luc is my best friend and all, but he made some very poor lifestyle choices. No offense, Luc!"

"None taken" Lucas said nervously, being quite afraid of the impeding doom as the net got closer and closer to the Carnivine. "Say, Shane, you're being awfully relaxed. That is quite weird, considering the situation we are in."

"I've been waiting for you to ask about that" Shane said. "You see, I have learned something from this adventure. Even when I'm at the brink of death, which seems to happen a lot, something has always rescued me. Sometimes it has been a plot-related thing, sometimes it was just a completely unrelated and yet still surprisingly logical thing."

"Well, aren't you confident. We'll wait for it, then…" Lucas said.

For a moment, as the net constantly moved closer towards the hungry Carnivine, nothing happened. The net just kept on moving across the tracks and the people inside it were becoming increasingly nervous.

"Well, nothing's happening, you genius" Pearl said.

"Shut up, curly" Shane retorted. "Besides, who are you, anyway?"

"Oh, right, I forgot to do any introductions" Lucas said. "Shane, this is Pearl, my best friend since childhood. Pearl, this is Shane, a guy who I have met two times and who basically doomed mankind by unleashing Regigigas to the world."

"Hey, I already said that I'm sorry!"

"No you didn't!"

"Well, I'm going to, just when the right opportunity arises…"

"Hey, we all make mistakes" Pearl said. "I admit it, selling you out to Team Galactic in order to save my own skin was kind of nasty and it was probably a mistake, considering that I have to be devoured with you. Quite frankly, I'm currently hoping that I'd have someone better to be eaten with than a complaining bitch, my naïve and simple friend and some random douchebag."

"You know, Lucas, I don't like this guy" Shane said.

"Uh, guys, how about this…" Dawn suggested as the net was only a minute or two away from being thrown into the Carnivine pit. "There's only three Carnivine there, and I'd really hate if they would digest my clothes and jewelry. I'll squeeze myself to the back of the net, and while you get eaten, I jump to safety so that by the time they have finished eating you guys, I'll be safe!"

"Hey, no fair, that was my backup plan!" Shane groaned. "Well, anyway, it doesn't matter, because we _are_ going to be saved. But it always happens at the last minute, anyway."

"You really think something random is just going to save us?" Pearl asked with a hint of sarcasm and fear in his voice.

"Well, maybe not you guys, I mean, you're just supporting characters" Shane said. "But I believe my chances of surviving are quite good, so-"

"Hey, did you hear something?" Lucas said.

Shane, who didn't like being interrupted, fell silent anyway, along with the other three, as they listened intently on what was happening. Indeed, something was rustling in the grass below them. Then, the savior that Shane had expected arrived. A small, blue Pokémon hopped towards the group and with one swift move, tore the net open. This enabled the group to simply jump out and watch as the empty net slowly approached its doom when the Carnivine had to eat that instead. Overjoyed about their survival, the group searched for the Pokémon that had saved them, and Lucas was the first one to notice: it was the same Croagunk that Lucas had befriended at the Great Marsh earlier; it still remembered Lucas ,and Lucas knew that he had done the right thing not catching it earlier.

"Thanks, buddy!" Lucas said to the Croagunk. "You saved us! See, I told you that it was smart to just leave the Croagunk alone! Well, none of you were here at the time, so whatever. We owe you our lives! I don't know how to thank you, but we'll be back, I promise!"

Lucas and the others turned to leave, but Croagunk failed to catch the hint. Instead, it kept following Lucas around, and soon Lucas realized what Croagunk was up to.

"You want to come with us?" he asked. "Well, I don't know… If you want it, I guess it's OK, but I don't have any spare slots… I already have six Pokémon…"

"Then stand aside, Luc, because this Croagunk will be mine!" Pearl announced and threw a Poké Ball at it.

Croagunk seemed to be quite unhappy to see Pearl as its new trainer, but it didn't resist when Pearl threw his Poké Ball at it, capturing it successfully, with Pearl grinning over his new Pokémon. Lucas felt a little guilty for Croagunk, though; Pearl's training methods weren't the right thing for Croagunk, and Lucas knew that Croagunk would have wanted to follow him instead of Pearl. So, he made a suggestion:

"Say, Pearl… let's make a trade, OK? You can have my Machoke in exchange for that Croagunk you just caught."

"You mean, you're offering me the evolved, unbelievably powerful and unstoppable Machoke in exchange for this little, poisonous runt? You're on, Luc!" Pearl said, giving Lucas Croagunk's Poké Ball whilst he grabbed Machoke's Poké Ball from Lucas. "You really are dumber than a sack of hammers, Luc. But I guess that's why I'm a great trainer and you are just a dude who catches Pokémon!"

"Yeah, I guess so…" Lucas muttered as he watched the Poké Ball of his new friend.

"Enough sentimentality and petty insults here!" Dawn said. "May I remind you, there's a big whopping Regigigas walking around Sinnoh and destroying everything on its way!"

"Oh yeah, those Team Galactic guys mentioned something about that…" Pearl said. "But it doesn't really make sense… why does Team Galactic want to destroy Sinnoh?"

"Well, I have a radio with me…" Lucas said. "We can find out the extent of the damage its done by simply tuning on. Here…"

Lucas grabbed his little portable radio and tuned on to the right frequency in order to catch the news. Thankfully, the ever-present, unreliable news were aired 24/7, so it was easy to listen to them:

"_…which just goes to show you why it is important to save your game often. Moving on to a lighter topic, there has been an extensive amount of eyewitness reports telling about a monstrous giant that has ripped through the lesser villages of northern Sinnoh and using Hyper Beam to destroy everything on its way. The Governor had this to say: 'Everything is completely fine. That people are saying something about a colossal monster is completely ridiculous and it just shows why it is important to keep our region drug-free. This fuss about a destructive golem is just as pointless as teen pregnancies and underage alcoholism. If you claim that you have seen a white, colossal giant, you are practically allowing our children to get pregnant, do drugs and drink themselves to death. Is that what we want to tell our children? I don't think so. So vote me, Mr. Governor!' Despite the Governor's extremely convincing speeches, our sissy police force has warned people in the vicinity of Veilstone City to evacuate, because the monster may or may not be approaching that way. I'm Fred Zachowski, and this has been 'Reliable News'. Good night, Sinnoh!"_

"Well, that was hardly convincing, it didn't even work as satire because it was too ridiculous!" Pearl said. "Should we get to Veilstone City, then?"

"Of course we need to. We're all in the same boat here. After all, we were the ones who caused it to go on a rampage" Shane said.

"No, _you_ were!" Dawn said.

"Nevertheless, Team Galactic would have never started to follow me if I hadn't been talking to you guys earlier" Shane said. "So, basically, you need to help me."

"Huh, I guess you're right…" Lucas said. "OK, let's go, then! Shane, get Tropius ready to fly again!"

**...**

After a short and relatively uneventful flight, Shane, Dawn, Lucas and Pearl arrived to Veilstone City, the 'city that never slept', although it didn't really differentiate it from any of the other cities. As its name implied, Veilstone was carved out of steep and rocky mountains. This gave the city a relatively cold atmosphere, and effectively isolated it from other towns. Everything seemed almost dauntingly peaceful, and there were no signs of Regigigas walking around and using its Hyper Beam to destroy places, so everything seemed quite uneventful. But there weren't any people walking around the streets and all houses had their doors locked and their curtains closed. The group walked around this ghost town, but saw no signs of life anywhere, until they reached a warehouse at the northern end of the city.

"Psst!"

The group turned to see a woman trying to catch their attention, hiding in the basement of the warehouse. The group quickly ran to the warehouse and were dragged into the basement. The woman who called for them was Maylene, the local gym leader, who wore sweatpants, but didn't have any shoes on, making her appearance rather odd, as she looked like she was constantly working out. She also had a band-aid over her nose, implying that it had been broken in some battle.

"Sorry about that" Maylene said, her voice sounding quite silly because of her broken nose, and Shane did his best to avoid laughing. "But this city has been like this ever since we heard the news about the Regigigas on the radio. We have been stashing people in this warehouse, and we're currently preparing our Pokémon to fight if that colossus decides to barge in."

"Get a hold of yourself, man!" Pearl hissed to Shane, who had to cover his face to conceal his giggling. "Anyhow, thanks for helping, even though we could have easily survived this predicament ourselves. In fact, we came to rescue you people, right guys?"

"What? We did?" Lucas asked.

"Pearl, I hope you learned a lesson about our previous predicament!" Dawn said.

"I did" Pearl said honestly. "And that was: never volunteer to do anything. If I haven't checked out the explosion at Lake Valor, Saturn and his cronies would have never captured me. But that's what I get for being great. You should have seen the state Lake Valor was in: all of the water had been drained, the Magikarp were flopping helplessly on the ground. It was horrible. I have no idea why they blew up the lake, because I was bound and gagged after I happened to waltz in and ask directions from those Galactic guys. But because they did that to the Pokémon; and because they hit me in my head, messing up my hair; I'll fight them!"

"Looks like you have more integrity in you than I thought, buddy!" Lucas said and patted Pearl on the back. "I'll help you. And the others are right behind us, isn't that right?"

"Ugh, well, I guess if everyone else is going…" Dawn groaned. "Those Team Galactic guys are jerks, but I guess I have to help, because you guys couldn't really survive without me."

"Yeah, _sure_ we wouldn't…" Pearl said.

Shane was currently giggling in the corner, but nodded in agreement anyway, signaling that he was also ready to fight Team Galactic.

"So, Ms. Nosejob" Pearl said, addressing Maylene again. "Where can we find Team Galactic so we can kick their asses to the infinity and beyond™?"

"This warehouse used to be owned by them, but we pushed them out of here during a colossal fight" Maylene explained. "Currently, they're holed up in their HQ, which happens to be the dark, threatening building just next door."

"Oh, how funny we missed it, then" Shane remarked.

"Yeah, well, if you really think you can get Team Galactic out of this town, then be my guest" Maylene said. "But wait for a moment, please. I sent this girl to scout ahead in case Regigigas is coming… oh wait, there she comes right now! Look!"

Shane briefly saw a glimpse of a girl running past the warehouse basement. Realizing who it was, he immediately rushed to the basement's door and opened it, revealing that the girl was none other than Kris. She was visibly surprised to see Shane, and for a moment, neither of the two couldn't think of anything to say, until Kris opened her mouth:

"Shane! What are you doing here?"

"I came with these, uh… friends" Shane said, pointing at Dawn, Lucas and Pearl. "Well, you know those two, we met them in Hearthome, and that's Pearl, a slick, conniving bastard."

"I'm sure you and him really hit it off" Kris said and jumped down into the basement. "Maylene, that thing is coming. It's not that hard to miss!"

"OK, everyone" Maylene said, addressing her gym trainers who had crowded the basement. "Prepare your fighting-type Pokémon, and get ready to fight. I have my Lucario here, ready to kick some golem ass! Also, everyone, these four young heroes have promised to show Team Galactic who's boss! Put your hands together for them, please! Yes, that's right, thank you!"

"Wait, you're about to do _what_?" Kris asked.

"Yeah, you heard her, and you're going to help me!" Shane said. "We're going to sneak into Team Galactic's lair and, you know, save the day and such."

"But how will that help us against that Regigigas?"

"It won't, but it's Team Galactic's fault that Regigigas was unleashed, so they probably are planning to use it for some dirty purposes!"

"No it wasn't" Lucas said. "You were the one who kicked that thing!"

"Thanks a lot, Lucas!" Shane groaned. "You just couldn't keep it to yourself. Well, now that everyone knows, yes, it was me who caused that thing to start destroying houses and probably killing dozens of people. Well _excuuuuuse me_!"

"For some reason, I am not surprised…" Kris said. "But if Team Galactic is really causing all this trouble, then I guess it's up to us to defeat them, for whatever reason."

"That's the spirit!" Shane said, then turned to Maylene. "Now, I have the phone number of a certain person who can help us. It's Cynthia, she's a member of the Legendary Society, and even though I don't recall her giving me her number, I quickly memorized it when she showed me her badge. She's also the Pokémon League Champion of Sinnoh, so I guess she should be able to be of help. She's probably trying to find Regigigas right now, so call her and ask her to come here! Tell her that Regigigas is here and so is Team Galactic's HQ, which, surprisingly enough, they made no attempt to hide. But, you know, don't tell her that I accidentally unleashed a monster that might cause the end of the world as we know it."

"Yeah, because it's not the first time it happened" Kris commented.

"Shut up, Kris! OK, gang, let's move out!"

**...**

Through a hidden door located in the Galactic Warehouse, Shane, Kris, Dawn, Lucas and Pearl managed to infiltrate Team Galactic's headquarters. While the group expected something dark and daunting, they found out that the building was a relatively nice looking, standard office building with the Team Galactic symbol (a large, yellow G) as well as Nintendu logos and trademarks being scattered all over. There were no stairs, but the floors were connected to each other through two-way portals, which hinted that Team Galactic most likely got access to cutting-edge technology through the assets of the Nintendu Corporation. While the building itself wasn't very depressing, Team Galactic constantly spouted motivational phrases from its speakers and video monitors, telling Galactic members to conform and serve the will of their masters. When one audio broadcast started playing, the entire group froze still to listen:

"_Everything exists for profit! Everything belongs to Team Galactic! Look beyond the world - the time and space will become Team Galactic's. Resume work!_"

The group managed to sneak into the locker rooms in peace, mostly because there were only a few Galactic Grunts working, and their motivation wasn't very high. Besides grunts, occasional scientists and maintenance personnel were present, but they paid very little attention to their surroundings, merely did their work mechanically, not bothering to change their routines.

In the locker room , the group managed to find five conveniently placed Galactic uniforms, three male and two female versions. With relative trouble, the group managed to squeeze themselves into these skin-tight, spacesuit-looking, gray uniforms, and needless to say, they all felt quite ridiculous, especially Dawn, who just wouldn't shut up:

"…and I didn't even want to come with you guys, I have no idea what I'm doing here, and this is all just baloney anyway because I was supposed to enter the contest and get my fourth ribbon and win the Grand Festival anyway, 'cuz…"

"You know, Dawn, nobody forced you to come!" Kris said.

"Yeah, but I don't want to stay behind alone" Dawn said. "And those people down there would have forced me to battle against Regigigas and it's just too frightening for me."

"Sure…" Pearl said after getting into his own uniform. "Hang on a second… I'm no expert on this, but I think we'll get caught rather quickly with these on."

"What do you mean?" Lucas asked.

"Well, in case you haven't noticed, all Galactic Grunts have identical, light blue hair and stupid-looking bowl cuts" Pearl said. "So, in order to look like them, we need to have similar hair! I don't see any wigs laying around, so-"

"No way! No one is touching my hair!" Dawn shrieked and took a few steps away from Pearl.

"Shut up, for Christ's sake, you'll blow our cover!" Kris hissed.

"I don't know, this place does seem to be awfully abandoned…" Shane said as he looked around an empty corridor. "I was expecting this place to have at least three times more people. I wonder where all the grunts are…"

Shane was interrupted by another audio broadcast, but this one was obviously not a recording. In fact, the group could recognize Saturn's taunting voice:

"_Your attention please. All eyes on the monitors, proles! Grand Master Cyrus will now address you directly!_"

"Did he say 'Cyrus'?" Shane asked.

Indeed, all the TV monitors in the building were turned on automatically, and the group got a glimpse of Team Galactic's leader for the first time. It was Cyrus, the friendly executive Shane met earlier. Suddenly, everything made a lot sense to him now, even though everyone else had already figured it out. Shane was still partly in denial:

"No, it can't be!" Shane said. "That guy is Nintendu's vice president and a standup guy!"

"He's a comedian?" Lucas asked.

"No! I mean, an executive working for a multinational corporation can't really be evil!"

"Well, I don't know if you haven't noticed, but all of Nintendu's products so far have contained evil" Kris mentioned. "Even these uniforms are labeled 'Nintendu Standard Galactic Uniform™'."

"Hey, shut up, he's going to talk!" Pearl shushed.

"_Our beloved workers_" Cyrus said on the screen, his face showing no sign of emotion. "_The hour of victory is ahead of us. Our organization is preparing for a brighter future, and with that, so is the whole world. You may have noticed that, even though it's not seminar day, several of our employees are somewhere else. They are preparing for our ultimate plan, something that will steer this organization into new tracks. I want to thank you all for participating in this project, and I hope to see you all in the future as well. Unfortunately, in a matter of hours, I must leave you, but I trust that my second-in-command, Saturn, will take good care of you until I once again return. End of communication._"

Cyrus' face then disappeared, but the monitors weren't closing yet, because the message from the sponsor was still playing:

"_This propaganda speech has been delivered to you by Nintendu's Personalized Villain Handheld, because no faceless mook is perfect without them. Get yours today! Nintendu: Because we need the money!_"

"Well, that wasn't too subtle…" Kris muttered. "But that Cyrus guy is planning something, and I'm sure it's terribly important and most likely will be something evil. We got to find his office!"

"What about our hair?" Lucas asked.

"Forget about that, let's just put hoods on to cover them up. And yes, that includes you, Dawn! Remember, don't talk to anyone!"

"You're the leader, Kris" Shane said. "Lead us, then!"

"Well, I have never been here before, but I still have a strong feeling that Cyrus' office is… this way!"

Kris ran away from the locker room and the other four followed her, running through the corridors of the HQ. At first, the place seemed relatively nice, as there were several rooms designed to provide hospitality to Team Galactic members. The group passed through an employee break room, a TV room which broadcasted Nintendu's commercials on an infinite loop, a kitchen and even a nap room where two Galactic Grunts were seen sleeping.

However, as the group went through a portal and arrived to the third floor of the Galactic Building, the rooms got darker and more disturbing. More importantly, they contained weird machinery and rooms that were specifically designed for Pokémon experiments. One large room contained a large group of Electrode hooked into a machine, most likely to produce energy for the HQ's needs. Finally, as the group went through one teleported, they encountered an even more bizarre and disturbing sight.

The group walked through a long, poorly lit corridor, filled with strange tubes that contained green liquid. And even more strangely enough, there were some things sealed inside the tubes, wallowing in the green liquid in suspended animation. It was impossible to determine what was inside the tubes, so the group continued on walking until they arrived to Cyrus' office.

Cyrus' office was otherwise similar to a normal office building… except that it was quite dark and daunting and had three container tubes at the walls and a very large computer at the back of the office. Accompanying Cyrus were two of his Commanders: Saturn, and the mysterious scientist, Charon.

"Welcome" Cyrus greeted without even flinching or panicking at the sight of a group of intruders in his office. "Just so you know, your infiltration was successful until we saw you with the surveillance cameras. Quite smart of you to disguise as Team Galactic members, but that hardly matters now. Tell me, what do you see in those tubes on the wall?"

The group turned to watch the three tubes, and indeed, they saw a Pokémon inside each tube. They were the lake trio that Professor Rowan told Dawn, Lucas and Pearl about, the three legendary pixie-resembling Pokémon. Their bodies were otherwise blue, but their heads were all of a different color: one had a yellow head, the second one had a pink head and the third one had a blue head. They were held in similar suspension as the strange things encountered before, trapped by strange green liquid, but they were visibly suffering when being crammed into small tubes, and struggled to get out, but to no avail. Cyrus then explained their features to the group:

"Indeed, these are the legendary Pokémon, Uxie, Mesprit and Azelf, the lake trio. Uxie, the embodiment of knowledge, will erases your memories if you look into its eyes when they are open. Mesprit, the embodiment of emotions, will literally suck your emotions away if you touch it. And Azelf, the embodiment of willpower, will remove ones will if you attempt to harm it, rendering you immobile for all eternity. You can imagine how powerful the lake trio is when put together. But I digress, their powers are hardly anything that I hold to a high regard. I need them for more important purposes. Behold!"

Now, Cyrus held up a chain made out of eight red crystals, the Red Chain, which he had shaped like a staff that he could use.

"With this, as well as the Lustrous and Adamant Orbs, I can manipulate the beings of time and space, for that is my plan: to create a whole new world, void of emotions, which are merely holding our species back. I have you to thank, Shane, or whatever your name was. The new world is ever closer to us now that you sold me the Adamant Orb. In that new world, I shall be God, and it is I who shall decide of the matters of life and death! Charon was generous enough to extract these crystals from the lake trio to make the manufacturing of the Red Chain possible, and I thank you for that, Mr. Charon. These three Pokémon are now worthless to me!"

The group was quiet, as they didn't have the power to contain that much information in them, ad were also unable to think of anything clever or humane to say, so they were simply quiet.

"I see that the introduction of my plan has left you speechless" Cyrus said. "Alas, I wish had more time to have a conversation with you and ask about your adventures, but I must go. Mt. Coronet awaits, and if my calculations are correct, which they usually are, Jupiter and Mars should be there now. Saturn, come now!"

Saturn nodded at his master, and he and Cyrus marched away from the Galactic building, leaving the group confused and confounded back in Cyrus' office. For a while, no one had realized that they were left alone with Charon, who merely glanced at the group. Kris was the first one able to open her mouth:

"Uh… who were you again?" she asked.

"I am Charon, Team Galactic's leading scientist" Charon explained and took a few steps closer towards the group. "And may I say, I have to admire the way you got here. I probably would have been able to activate the building's security devices, but it was just too much fun seeing you desperately trying to find this office!"

"What is Cyrus going to do at Mt. Coronet?" Lucas asked. "I mean, if you have the time to tell us…"

"My time is limitless, as my work with Team Galactic appears to be done" Charon explained, and the group struggled to keep up with his weird method of speaking. "Our leader Cyrus is merely interested in creating a whole new world. To do that, he needs to harness the powers of Dialga and Palkia, the two Pokémon that control time and space. Of course, I have no idea if that'll actually work or not. Hmm… Perhaps another option needs to be considered. One befitting the genius of Charon!"

"What the hell have you done with these Pokémon here?" Shane asked as he walked to the three container tubes.

"Yeah, answer us know, you geek, or you're going to wish your dad would have never gotten your mom drunk enough to conceive you!" Pearl shouted.

"Impatient, aren't we?" Charon taunted and scoffed at Pearl before walking to the container tubes. "Just so you know, I'm not talking to that hyper, blonde guy anymore. Now, I'm sure that you have realized by now that Regigigas was just a red herring. The point was to distract you and the authorities long enough in order to go on with our plan at Mt. Coronet. It worked moderately well, but I can see that you were smart enough to realize our plan, if just a little too late."

"Well, yeah, I am pretty smart" Shane said, much to the annoyance of the others.

"Yes, I can see that from your face…" Charon said without even looking in Shane's direction. "Well, I'm sure you people are trained enough to know how to release these Pokémon from their captivity. In the meantime, I'm out of here. I need my assistant Philip to bring me some coffee. See you in the next life!"

Charon cheerfully walked away from the office, whistling a recognizable theme tune along the way. The group glanced at each other, then tried to brainstorm a way to release the lake trio from their tubes.

"So… how do we do it?" Lucas asked. "I wasn't paying attention too much, and I usually faked sick during electronics classes!"

"I don't know, but I think it involves this big red button here…" Kris said and walked to the big computer. "Well, if my experience in games, I mean, adventures like these has taught my anything, it's that one should always push big red buttons! Let's give it a shot!"

Without bothering to think it over, Kris pushed the big red button, which also happened to be the only button in the computer. This seemed to work: the green liquid in the container tubes was leaking out and the tubes opened up. Uxie, Mesprit and Azelf started moving again, and now that they were all free, they simply disappeared as they teleported away.

"Hey, is that your idea of thanking us, huh?" Shane yelled, whilst fully knowing that they couldn't hear him. "Come back here, you cowardly pixies!"

"Enough about that!" Kris yelled and slapped Shane in the face. "What was that talk earlier about you selling the Adamant Orb to that Cyrus guy?"

"Hey, that hurt!" Shane said and pretended that it really had hurt him, unsuccessfully. "OK, yeah, Cynthia had told me to deliver the Adamant Orb straight to the museum in Celestic Town, and maybe I happened to sell it to Cyrus, yes. But I thought he was the curator, and besides, he gave me money! You can't blame me for single-handedly bringing the world to the brink of destruction!"

"So, if Cyrus manages to awaken Dialga and Palkia, it's all your fault?" Dawn asked, much to Shane's annoyance.

"God, you people are living in the past! Get over it, I messed up, so what. Let's get out of here already!"

Since there was no point in arguing about Shane's stupidity, the group left Cyrus' office and quickly rushed downstairs, to the locker rooms. Most likely breaking some speed records along the way, they quickly discarded their Galactic uniforms and changed back to their normal attire, although Dawn complained about the electricity in the Galactic building messing up her hair. Again leading the away, Kris ran away from the locker room, but bumped into a man working there along the way.

"Hey!" the man shouted. "Intruder alert! Intr-"

To shut the man up, Lucas and Pearl grabbed him, covered his mouth and slammed him to the wall. When Kris got up, she recognized the man immediately. Instead of the standard uniform, this man was wearing a fancy suit and had black, suave hair instead of the standard bowl cut.

"Hey, I know this guy!" Kris said. "It's Philip, that Rocket Executive I encountered in Johto, the one I told you about. Relax, Philip, stop struggling! Lucas, Pearl, let him speak. What are you doing here?"

"I'm working here!" Philip said nervously, being the submissive coward that he had always been. "Thanks to a technicality, I got out of prison, but I haven't been able to find my ball-busting wife Phyllis, thankfully enough. Fortunately, Team Galactic hired me, and I have been designing several doomsday devices here. In fact, that's Nintendu's 'three objectives'-motto: 'Profit, manufacture of shoddy products and global domination'."

"Relax, I didn't ask your life story!" Kris said. "I'm glad they have a place where ex-villains can work in."

"Thanks" Philip said. "Uh… you mind if I watch the news?"

"Not at all" Kris replied. "Shane, turn on the TV, will you?"

While reluctant to obey Kris, Shane did so anyway, so the group could get an update on what was going on in Veilstone City. Luckily enough, the news were on just now, and a reporter was broadcasting live from Veilstone, telling about the situation:

"_Yes, it is true, Regigigas has entered Veilstone City. There are flames and death all around me, explosions in the background and plenty of cool stuff that can't be shown in a low budget production like this! The local residents are doing their utmost to stop Regigigas, and have been somewhat successful in preventing it from destroying the city. So far, only two houses have been blown up by its Hyper Beam, so… wait! Who's that?"  
_

The group watched intently at the screen, and saw a woman dressed in black, flying with a Togekiss, slowly coming to the frame.

"_You, camera guy, are you with this? Good! Just look at that magnificent thing! It's Cynthia, the Sinnoh League Champion! Just look how she handles that Togekiss! She's flying towards the Regigigas… Wow! It's using Aura Sphere! That blue ball of energy is flying… BAM! It struck the Regigigas! And Regigigas is down and out! I repeat: Cynthia has knocked out Regigigas! Ladies and gentlemen, Veilstone City is safe!_"

The group could hear strong cheering from the TV, but could barely realize that when they were cheering so hard themselves. Regigigas was knocked out, and Cynthia had arrived just in the nick of time. Sure, Regigigas had killed about twenty people during its rampage and crushed several houses and lesser villages in northern Sinnoh, but at least Sinnoh was now safe.

The group had little time to celebrate, however. Team Galactic had currently invaded Mt. Coronet completely, and Cyrus, along with his band of freaks, was slowly but surely approaching the Spear Pillar, where he would find the two legendary Pokémon, Dialga and Palkia…


	36. The Catastrophe, Part 2

**Chapter Thirty-six: **_**The Catastrophe, Part 2**_

"Mr. Governor, it's me, Cynthia! You have to believe me! Yes, the Regigigas threat is over, but you don't understand, that wasn't Team Galactic's main plan! What? Yes, of course it was Cyrus! You really have to be an idiot if you haven't realized it before. Yes, they are reliable! Fine, if you won't help me, then I guess I'll have to do it myself!"

Kris, Shane, Dawn, Lucas and Pearl had gathered outside in the middle of Veilstone City, next to Regigigas' unconscious and immobile body. Cynthia was with them too, desperately trying to reason with the governor of Sinnoh, but to no avail. Eventually, she was forced to hang up on the governor.

"Well, it looks the authorities won't be helping us" she said.

"Why not?" Lucas asked.

"Obviously enough, they can't be bothered" Cynthia explained. "Now that the Regigigas threat is over, they refuse to believe that anything more dangerous is underway. So we, have to get to Mt. Coronet and stop Cyrus ourselves!"

"Wait, '_we_'?" Pearl cried. "Hell no, I'm not going to do anything anymore! I have had enough of villainous teams and mythical Pokémon trying to destroy everything! I don't know about you guys, but I'm going to Sunyshore and I'm getting my eighth badge and I'm going to win the Pokémon league! See you later!"

"Pearl! PEARL!"

Lucas tried to stop Pearl from leaving, but Pearl was already running away, and once he had started moving, there was no way to stop him. Lucas sighed, but had to admit to himself that Pearl wasn't the best guy in the world.

"Well, good riddance!" Shane scoffed as he watched Pearl running away. "He's an egoistic, arrogant, self-centered, impatient and conniving asshole anyway!"

"Well, aren't you like that too?" Kris asked.

"Maybe, but at least I have a chance of redemption!" Shane said. "And by redemption, I mean that I'll at least try to stop Cyrus from destroying the world or whatever his plan is."

"Well, just trying isn't going to help us!" Cynthia said. "Fortunately for us, I have called some backup. The gym leaders Roark and Byron are ready at the Mt. Coronet entrance and I also called Lance, who should be here in an hour or two"

"You called Lance? Cool, maybe I have time to grab a few beers with him and exchange pleasantries…" Shane pondered.

"No, not right now" Cynthia said. "We need to stop Cyrus first. My Togekiss can carry me and another person, and Shane, you have a Tropius, right? It can carry you along with Lucas and Dawn. Has it rested enough?"

"Sure, I gave it some Battery™, and that's what really gets you going!"

"Stop advertising!" Cynthia yelled. "OK, let's move out, then!"

"What about Regigigas? Are we just leaving it here?" Dawn asked.

"I told a construction crew to drag it back to the Snowpoint Temple" Cynthia said. "Mind you, I would like to find the jerk who woke it up and caused it to be so pissed…"

"Yeah, I would like that too, but life's not perfect" Shane said. "Let's go!"

***

Using their Pokémon, Kris, Shane, Dawn, Lucas and Cynthia flew to Oreburgh City, which was one of the many locations where Mt. Coronet could be accessed from. At the entrance to the caves, the group greeted Roark, his father Byron, as well as none other than Lance himself, looking just as distant and impressive as always.

"Hello, Cynthia! It's been a while" Lance greeted as the group arrived. "I can see that Mr. Cyrus is up to something. It was only a matter of time before something like this happened. Does he really have everything needed to summon Dialga and Palkia?"

"I'm afraid so, yes" Cynthia replied. "He captured the lake trio just to get the Red Chain, and he has somehow acquired the Adamant and Lustrous Orbs as well. He's one deranged madman, all right. But hey, enough chitchat. Cyrus has probably reached Spear Pillar by now."

"But I don't think I have ever thoroughly investigated this mountain, so I have no idea how to get to the pillar…" Lance said, glancing at the long mountain range that divided the Sinnoh region in half. "Say, you two, do you know this place?" he added to Roark and Byron.

"Sure as heck, mister!" Roark said enthusiastically. "I've been digging my way through Mt. Coronet since I was a wee lad!"

"Shut up, son!" Byron said. "Yeah, we know the layout. Sort of. And I already made a plan: we will split into groups and we run around pointlessly until some of us accidentally finds a way to the top and informs the others."

"Sounds good to me!" Shane said and prepared to enter the cave.

"Hold it!" Byron said and grabbed Shane by his collar. "First, we need to divide ourselves into groups."

"OK, I'll go with Lance!" Shane suggested.

"No" Lance replied rudely. "I'll take you two, what are your names?"

"Dawn and Lucas, sir!" Dawn said. "And I must say, it's an honor to-"

"Yeah, I'm sure it is, now let's go!"

Lance, having no patience for boot-licking, walked into the dark caves inside Mt. Coronet, disappearing together with Lucas and Dawn. Next up, it was Cynthia's turn to choose a companion:

"OK, then, I guess I should go with you" she said, looking at Kris. "You seem to be rather competent enough, and you have a lot of spirit. The Force is strong in this one."

"Uh, sure, I'll go with you" Kris said, being confused, but nevertheless flattered. "See you later, Shane!"

"But who I am going with?!" Shane yelled, but Cynthia and Kris had already disappeared into the dark cave.

"You're going with us, guy!" Roark said and pushed up his nerdy glasses. "Come on, it'll be fun, right dad?"

"Don't talk to me" Byron said. "Let's go, then!"

The interior of the bizarre caves of Mt. Coronet seemed awfully well lit. This was explained by the various torches and lamps hanging around, most likely left behind by Team Galactic. The whole place was like a maze inside, with tunnels leading to every imaginable direction. Byron grunted Roark and Shane to stick close to him and avoid getting lost. Roark didn't seem to listen, as he kept admiring every Pokémon and every piece of rock he saw. Shane, on the other hand, kept as close to Byron as possible, being able to smell his sweat. Shane had already learned that wandering around dark caves was not the smartest thing one could do.

Shane, Roark and Byron had to go through an endless network of caves, ladders and underground currents. Shane had no idea whether or not Byron even knew where he was going, but Shane couldn't ask him anything, as Byron was far too intimidating. Finally, after walking through empty tunnels for fifteen minutes, the trio could hear some noises. Peeking past a corner, Shane saw two Team Galactic grunts, arguing loudly with three others.

"Listen, taco-breath!" one grunt said. "I have no idea why the boss wanted to hire you, but for some reason, he did, so I'm giving you the only job you could possibly execute successfully, giving your limited brain capacity, you being an immigrant and all."

"Racism is not funny, _pendejo_" Miguel said. "But whatever you say. Me, José and Pepe will stay behind and guard this spot. You just carry on doing your whatever you are doing."

"Well, I have no idea what we're doing actually…" the grunt replied. "But hey, we're getting paid by the hour, so who cares? OK, well, take care. We're going!"

Shane peeked around the corner again to see the two Galactic Grunts walking away casually, leaving Miguel and his two cronies guarding the tunnel, preventing anyone from going through. It was obvious that the other tunnels were also blocked in a similar manner, but Shane only thought about how to get through Miguel. He, nor his cronies, weren't wearing the standard Team Galactic uniforms, which did seem odd.

"So, how are we getting past these fops?" Roark whispered.

"What do you mean 'how'?" Byron asked in disbelief. "Haven't I taught you anything, son? Might is right!"

"Hmm, that reminds me of a certain event of my life that I wasn't even present to witness but still remember…" Shane pondered. "A gym leader in Hoenn said something about 'live to win', so are we going to

"That man sounds like an excellent person" Byron said. "And yes, we are going to blast them off our way. Bastiodon, go!"

Byron unleashed his Pokémon, a humongous, 300-pound creature with steel plating covering its face, looking like a cross between a Zuniceratops and a bulldozer: Bastiodon. Not caring too much about safety regulations, Byron ordered his Pokémon to charge head on towards Miguel.

"Go, Bastiodon! Iron Head!"

Its steel plates glowing, Bastiodon ran towards the three Mexicans, but they managed to dodge just in time.

"I knew it! Just leave the dangerous tunnel to us, eh?" Miguel lamented. "Come on, boys, we can take out that rhino! Hypno, go!"

Miguel sent out his prized Pokémon, Hypno, whilst José and Pepe, once again without saying a word, sent out two Weezing. While Bastiodon was up against three Pokémon it didn't seem to mind too much The Weezing tried to attack with Flamethrower, but the burning fire did little to harm Bastiodon's sturdy, rock-hard body.

"OK, Bastiodon, Flash Cannon!" Byron yelled.

The inside of Bastiodon's mouth glowed white as it launched a silver-colored beam towards the two Weezing, knocking them out instantly, much to Miguel's annoyance:

"Fine, leave it all to me, then!" he sighed. "Whatever you want. _Chinga tu madre_, Byron! Hypno, use Psychic and lift that sucker in the air!"

Hypno's Psychic-attack wasn't very powerful against Bastiodon, but Hypno was powerful enough to use its psychic powers to literally lift Bastiodon in the air. Bastiodon tried to struggle and unleash itself from Hypno's psychic grip, but to no avail, and Byron seemed visibly distressed as Roark and Shane watched from afar.

"Come on, Shane, do something! Help my father!" Roark panicked.

"Hey, calm down, you're sweating all over me!" Shane said. "Can't you do anything yourself?"

"No, I can't, I'm a coward!" Roark wept.

"Fine, I'll do something" Shane groaned. "Droid, go!"

Shane chose his Magneton, which was always reliable when power was needed. While still being a coward and staying behind a corner, Shane ordered Droid to strike Hypno with Thunder Wave. This was effective, and as Hypno was completely paralyzed, it lost its grip from Bastiodon, causing the latter to smash on the ground again.

"What?! You again!" Miguel gasped. "You, whoever-guy-who-has-ruined-our-plans-many-times! Sorry, can't remember your name right now!"

"Well, I can forgive that…" Shane said. "How did you wind up working for Team Galactic, I thought you had learned better after our previous encounter which somehow involved with everyone of us getting amnesia!"

"I don't remember much either, but I'd like to take this moment to point out that we're freelance criminals" Miguel said. "Team Galactic just happened to have a few openings. But enough chitchat. We were supposed to defend this stronghold, and my accent is slipping, so we have to kill you now. Are you ready, _amigos_?"

José and Pepe nodded, then sent out more Pokémon: two Golbat. They apparently weren't running out of Pokémon anytime soon, and now that Hypno was cured of its paralysis, Shane and Byron were outnumbered now.

"Time to improvise an ultra-cool battle strategy!" Shane said. "Droid, use Thunderbolt at the general direction of the enemy and hope that it has the desired effect!"

Droid seemed to understand, and it unleashed a burst of electricity towards the enemy Pokémon. This was effective, and as the two Golbat were very weak to electricity, they were both easily knocked out by Droid's attack. Shane rejoiced over his victory, but then something began to happen: Droid was glowing and it started to mutate into a strange form. Its center part started glowing larger and the Pokémon itself started to become oval-shaped. One of Droid's "eyes" was turned red and a yellow antenna grew on its "head". Shane's Magneton had evolved into a Magnezone.

"Wow, awesome, Droid!" Shane said. "That's one badass look you got there…"

"Of course!" Roark said. "The strong magnetic field emitted by Mt. Coronet somehow transformed Shane's Magneton into a Magnezone, thus-"

"Stop being such a nerd, Roark!" Byron yelled. "Anyway, congratulations, Shane, but we have to get rid of those guys on our way. On three, then. One… Two… Three! Bastiodon, Earthquake!"

"Droid, uh, Zap Cannon!"

Bastiodon stomped on the ground heavily, causing the entire cave to shake. The floor below started cracking, and as the electrical blast fired by Magnezone struck Miguel, his cronies and their Pokémon, the floor below them collapsed, plummeting all of the Mexicans into a deep, endless pit below. As the dust settled, Shane carefully moved closer to watch at the strange pit more carefully.

"That packed some power all right…" he muttered. "Droid, return!"

"OK, are we quite ready now? Let's head to the Spear Pillar, come on!" Byron shouted and started to run deeper into the cave, with Shane and Roark following suit.

This eccentric trio continued walking through the complex tunnels of Mt. Coronet, and as luck would have it, they eventually surfaced at the top. They were now above-ground, and thanks to the high altitude, it was snowing constantly. Shane only got a short moment to get a good look at the view around him: he could practically see the entire Sinnoh from his location. But as Byron and Roark ran towards the location of the Spear Pillar, Shane had to follow as well.

It seems that Shane, Byron and Roark were the last ones to get through the mysterious caves, as Cynthia, Lance, Kris, Dawn and Lucas were already waiting for them near the entrance of the Spear Pillar, which seemed more like ancient ruins or anything, standing on the highest peak of Mt. Coronet. Strangely enough, no one was complaining about the cold weather, although, judging by her expression, Dawn could have probably used some warmer clothing. Just as they reached the entrance, Byron told that his job was done, and together with Roark, just abruptly left, leading Shane to question Byron's so-called "bravery".

As Cynthia and Lance had acknowledge Shane's presence with a curt nod, the entire remaining group stepped into the Spear Pillar. Indeed, just a few yards away from them, stood Cyrus, Saturn, Jupiter, Mars and three Galactic grunts. Cyrus was apparently holding some sort of rousing speech to his members, but had to interrupt it when the group arrived. His face didn't show any signs of emotion and it was as if he had waited for the group's arrival.

"I should have known…" Cyrus said. "Even at the moment of my imminent triumph, you just fail to see the bigger picture. You are standing on the way of the creation of a whole new world! With these two Pokémon, I can achieve my goal! Behold!"

Cyrus started walking towards a large space between two pillars, with large squares painted on the floor, as if they were reserved for something. Cynthia and Lance glanced at each other and attempted to follow Cyrus, but as they approached him, Jupiter and Mars blocked their route by spreading their arms and standing in front of them.

"I wouldn't make any false moves if I were you, Jupiter and Mars are known for their ever-growing urge to disembowel people" Cyrus said. "All you have to do is watch. Whatever you have to say, it can wait. Just… watch."

Cyrus grabbed the two priceless artifacts he would need for his plan: the Adamant Orb and the Lustrous Orb. Shane slapped his forehead as he watched at the Adamant Orb he accidentally sold to Cyrus, but fortunately enough, no one reminded him of this sad fact. Cyrus placed both orbs on the painted squares, then grabbed the Red Chain from his pocket. Then, he merely stood still, waiting for something to happen. Several minutes passed and nothing happened. Everyone was staring intently at the squares, until something started to happen…

Out of nowhere, quite literally even, two humongous, probably twenty feet high Pokémon appeared on the two squares. Dialga was a blue, sauropod-like Pokémon with gray metallic plates all over its body, including one chest plate with a blue diamond in the middle. This long-clawed dinosaur emitted an ear-shattering shriek when another Pokémon appeared besides it: Palkia, which was a bipedal, light purple Pokémon also resembling a dinosaur, but more like a theropod. It was just as huge as Dialga, and had two, round purple-striped plates on its shoulder area, where two pink pearls lay encrusted with a gray rim encircling them. Cyrus' eyes widened as he watched at these magnificent Pokémon. Shane's reaction was predictable:

"Man, those are some ugly dinosaurs…"

"Are those Dialga and Palkia?" Lucas asked.

"Well, what do you think?!" Kris snarked. "Of course they are! I'm more interested in what they do…"

"Nothing too positive, I'm afraid…" Cynthia muttered. "Palkia has the power to warp space, and Dialga can warp time. With the Red Chain, Cyrus can control them and harness their power. He can basically shake and bake a new Earth if he wanted, and our civilization would kick the bucket with that."

"Well, it was a pleasure knowing you!" Dawn said. "Can we get out now? I'm freaking terrified by those monsters?"

"No!" Kris said. "Get a hold of yourself, Dawn! And the rest of you, this ain't something you can just spectate on and comment about it, we have to do something!"

"I don't mind spectating…" Shane said and took a few steps backwards. "I'll be here if anyone needs me…"

Deciding that two, colossal, reality-bending monsters under control of a genocidal madman were too much for him, Shane tried to flee the Spear Pillar, but the three grunts blocked his exit.

"Get out of my way! Don't make me hurt you! I know Han Mu Do! Well, I have seen it on TV…" Shane said. "Hadouken!"

"Please, you can only kill us with laughter if you keep that up" one grunt said. "Just watch as Mr. Cyrus does his thing!"

"Hmm, the 'kill it with laughter' part sounded good…" Shane pondered. "If I had the equipment, I'd give you the Eddie Valiant treatment right now, but I don't think I can remember how the song went…"

"No matter, we don't want to hear it anyway…" another grunt said, marched up to Shane and punched him in the nose, knocking him unconscious.

During Shane's fruitless escape attempt, the others were slowly regaining some courage, and Lance seemed to be ready to fight:

"You know, Kris is right!" he said. "Those are just two Pokémon, maybe a bit stronger than usual. If we focus our attacks on them, we should be able to take 'em out! What say you, Cynthia?"

"I say… hell, let's do it!" Cynthia said. "The rest of you, you need to-"

"Not so fast!" Jupiter snapped, grabbing a Poké Ball from her pocket together with Mars. "Like said, the boss' plan is currently in motion. You can't just waltz in and ruin everything! Skuntank, go!"

"Purugly, go!" Mars yelled.

Jupiter and Mars unleashed their prized Pokémon, Skuntank and Purugly, who were more powerful than they looked. Cynthia and Lance glanced at each other, then countered with their own Pokémon:

"Garchomp, go!"

"Dragonite, you're up!"

Cynthia's sharp-toothed blue dragon Garchomp and Lance's gigantic Dragonite were much too intimidating for Jupiter's Skuntank and Mars' Purugly, causing them to skulk in terror, much to the annoyance of their trainers. Lance then marched up to Jupiter and Mars to take care of them.

"Sorry, ladies, I don't usually do this, but there's no choice!" he said.

Lance then grabbed both Jupiter and Mars from the head and knocked their heads together, knocking them out as well. The grunts on the background noticed this, and all sent out a Bronzong to battle Garchomp and Dragonite, and in the ensuing chaos, one Bronzong almost charged a Rock Slide directly at Dawn, but Lucas managed to push her out of the way. The shallow Dawn didn't take this as a sign of saving her life, though:

"What are you doing, pushing people down like that?! My clothes will get dirty!"

"I'm sorry…" Lucas mumbled. "I just-"

"Hey, what the hell are you doing?!" Kris yelled and dodged when Lance's Dragonite swung its tail whilst attacking, its trainer being occupied. "Help Lance and Cynthia out, we're in a battle here!"

"We are?" Lucas asked. "I failed to notice!"

"What are _you_ going to do, then?" Dawn asked.

"I'm going to fight Cyrus" Kris replied calmly and checked her Poké Balls.

"What? Alone?!" Dawn scoffed.

"Of course not alone" Kris said. "But with my Pokémon. Just keep those grunts occupied. I'll think of a way to distract Cyrus long enough for us to escape!"

"Escape? But what about Dialga and Palkia?"

"Forget that!" Kris shouted, her voice being slightly muffled by the sounds of stone shattering on the background when Cynthia's Garchomp bashed one Bronzong to the wall. "We can't take those on, we need help, and to do that, we have to get the hell out of here! I'll be a distraction or something!"

"How valiant, sacrificing yourself for us…" Lucas said.

"Sacrificing my ass, I'm not going to get myself killed!" Kris said. "But Cyrus has obviously gone insane in the membrane, so I have to think of something. I'll be fine, just fight!"

As Kris ran towards the squares where Cyrus was standing, staring at Dialga and Palkia and muttering some kind of spell, Lucas got up and helped Dawn up as well.

"So, are you up to it?" Lucas asked. "Fighting, I mean."

"Of course, I'm not a pushover!" Dawn said. "Just watch! Empoleon, go!"

"Torterra, go!"

Sending out their Pokémon, Dawn and Lucas rushed to help Lance and Cynthia in their battle, while Kris marched straight up to Cyrus. Saturn, who was standing on Cyrus' side, noticed this, and walked towards Kris to prevent her from coming closer.

"Stop right there!" Saturn yelled. "I'm only mildly afraid to use excessive force!"

"Get out of my way, you nut!" Kris yelled, trying to claw Saturn away. "Can't you see what you're doing here? Those two Pokémon can grind us all to dust if we don't do something!"

"Hey, I only care about the results!" Saturn replied. "Now, go away, or my Toxicroak is going to punish you!"

Saturn showed Kris his Pokémon, Toxicroak, that extended its claws, looking like it was ready to fight. Kris actually managed to smile at this.

"So, you really want to fight?" Kris asked. "Are you _sure_?"

"Yes! Come on!"

"OK, then" Kris replied happily. "You know, a while ago, I got this Pokémon from an egg and it nearly ate all my money, and I mean, literally. But I managed to feed it well, raise it well and battle with it, so… well, I'll show you! Snorlax, go!"

Kris' fat little Munchlax had evolved: it was now a huge, dark blue- and white-colored bear, Snorlax, that weighed a ton and still had a humongous appetite. Toxicroak stood no chances when Kris' Snorlax threw a powerful punch at it, knocking it to the ground. Saturn watched in horror as Snorlax extended its arm, and only needed to pat Saturn lightly on the back to cause him to fly several feet away as well.

"Damn, your Pokémon are quite wimpy…" Kris said, surprised about this victory.

"It's not my fault!" Saturn moaned. "This operation has been really expensive, and that money comes from our Pokémon budget."

"Whatever…"

With all of the Commanders out of the question, Kris marched straight up to the crazed Cyrus:

"Oi! Cyrus!"

The Galactic boss turned his head only slightly to see Lance, Cynthia, Dawn and Lucas wiping out the grunts while his Commanders lay motionless on the ground. For the first time, Cyrus' face seemed to register something, but he could only sneer at this. When Cyrus turned his attention back to Dialga and Palkia, Kris spoke instead:

"Give it up, Cyrus, we can easily take down your little dragon/dinosaur-thingies, and your Commanders are down and out. Just give me the Red Chain and we'll take care of the rest!"

Kris was merely trying her luck: she had no idea if they could ever defeat Dialga and Palkia, but at least she could try psychological warfare. This wasn't that successful, however. While Kris tried to reason with Cyrus, the battle on the background was fading. Only one Bronzong was left, and Dawn and Lucas were now fighting against that while Lance and Cynthia told Dragonite and Garchomp to attack Cyrus instead.

"Well, your loss" Kris said. "You will now get your ass kicked by two Pokémon League Champions. Don't say I didn't warn you!"

Kris then took a few steps backwards and hid behind her Snorlax, which was currently sitting on Saturn to prevent him from escaping. Cyrus' attention was finally obtained when Lance's Dragonite and Cynthia's Garchomp rushed straight towards the legendary dragons.

"Dragonite, use Outrage!"

"Garchomp, Dragon Rush!"

The two dragon Pokémon attacked Dialga and Palkia with everything they got, but this wasn't enough. Cyrus merely waved the Red Chain in the air, signaling Dialga and Palkia to attack, and they did just so. They prepared their signature attacks: Roar of Time and Spacial Rend. With Dialga's diamond glowing blue and Palkia's pearl glowing red, Dialga opened its mouth and Palkia's forearm started to gather energy. Dialga unleashed a huge, indigo-colored beam from its mouth as Palkia slashed the air, hurling a cresent blade of energy towards its opponents.

The destructive force of these attacks was far too much for Dragonite and Garchomp. They didn't even had the chance to attack as they were knocked to the ground. The attacks tore down everything on their way, and Cynthia, Lance, Dawn, Lucas and even Cyrus' own henchmen were hurled into the air, causing all of them to hit the hard rock floor, rendering them unconscious. The power of the attack caused one pillar to collapse, and pieces of rock were scattered everywhere. Cyrus was satisfied with this attack and even smiled a bit, watching his foes lay helplessly on the ground. Cyrus then turned his attention back to Dialga and Palkia, but noticed something that disturbed him: Kris' Snorlax was still standing, and behind it, so was Kris.

"What the-?!"

"Like I said, Cyrus" Kris said, trying to appear calm, but her hands were trembling uncontrollably as she approached Cyrus. "You can't defeat us all. Come on, surrender when you still can. We, uh… we have special forces and black ops assassins ready, just waiting for our orders!"

"No you don't" Cyrus replied. "Besides, don't tell me that _you're _going to stop me! What are you going to do, throw a spatula at me? Tell me one reason why I couldn't just tell Dialga and Palkia to obliterate you this instant!"

"Well…" Kris said. "Oh, I remember! They just used their attack power when they knocked out all my friends. And now they have to recharge! I have plenty of time to grab that Red Chain and the orbs from you!"

"No you don't, you foolish girl!" Cyrus yelled and advanced Palkia. "Only Dialga has to recharge, but Palkia doesn't! Spacial Rend doesn't work that way!"

"Wait, really?" Kris asked, overwhelmed by fear. "Oh sh-"

"And now!" Cyrus said. "Palkia, please, use Spacial Rend on that filthy lady over there! I always wanted to see what happens when you use it point-blank on a human…"

Obeying Cyrus' orders blindly, Palkia advanced Kris, and its pearl started to glow again. Kris was trembling and couldn't even utter a single word. She could only stare at this twenty-foot tall, purple beast as it prepared to attack. When Palkia used its forearm to gather energy and prepared to slash the air, Kris closed her eyes… and nothing happened.

Kris opened her eyes again and saw that she was surrounded by three Pokémon: Uxie, Mesprit and Azelf. They had somehow disabled Palkia's attack, rendering it immobile. Kris watched in confusion as the three pixies used their psychic powers, forcing Dialga and Palkia to retreat and stand on the painted squares again. And similarly as they appeared to the Spear Pillar, they slowly started to fade away again.

"NO!" Cyrus screamed and tried to use the Adamant and Lustrous Orbs somehow, unsuccessfully. "Damn it… Hey! They're mine!"

As Cyrus' focus was lost for a moment, Mesprit and Azelf used their powers to grab the orbs from Cyrus, then blasted them to the floor, breaking them to pieces. Next, Uxie advanced Cyrus, preparing to snatch the Red Chain, but Cyrus was faster. Utilizing the Red Chain's capabilities, Cyrus opened a strange portal out of thin air. This daunting, black portal looked like a black hole, and despite the lake trio's attempts to stop him, Cyrus entered the portal, disappearing completely as the portal closed down.

"He disappeared…" Kris said softly as the lake trio stopped circling around her. "That means… I won! Woohoo! Guys, wake up!"

Now that Dialga and Palkia had disappeared back to their own world, everything was perfectly normal again. Nevertheless, Dawn, Lucas, Lance and Cynthia felt the severe aftershocks caused by the attacks of these two legendary Pokémon. Dawn was especially reluctant to get up at all, but Lucas managed to drag her up anyway. Holding her head, Cynthia looked around her in confusion.

"Where's Cyrus?" she asked after getting her voice back.

"Beats me, but he's gone now" Kris said cheerfully. "And so are those spacetime dragons, whatever they were."

"Dialga and Palkia, you mean…" Lance corrected. "Hey, hang on! Look!"

Lance pointed at the lake trio, that were still floating in the air and circling the spot where the portal used to be. Lance was quite shocked to see this, but Kris explained it:

"Yeah, I have no idea how they got here either. I released them from captivity back at Team Galactic's HQ, and now they somehow appeared to save us."

"Well, isn't it obvious?" Cynthia asked and smiled. "You saved them, so they returned the favor!"

"No, can't be, that's just cheesy…" Kris said and turned away from Cynthia in embarrassment. "Probably just a coincidence, or… something…"

The group only got a brief moment to recall their exhausted Pokémon and wonder what happened to Cyrus, when they heard footsteps behind them. More precisely, it sounded like a group of people running towards the Spear Pillar. Leading the group were Roark and Byron, and behind them was a group of policemen, ready to save the day, if not just a few minutes too late… again.

"That's him, officers!" Roark yelled. "Cyrus Ak- Wait a minute! He's not here!"

"Typical…" said Looker, who was commanding the group of officers. "If this is the wrong place again, I give up. Wait a second… this _does_ look like a scene of crime!"

"And it is! Hi Looker!" Kris said. "Remember me, from the Radio Tower?"

"Not really, but hi anyway" Looker replied rudely and walked around the partially destroyed Spear Pillar, gazing at the unconscious Team Galactic members. "So, it was Team Galactic, huh? I knew it. The Governor has prevented me from investigating their dirty business for years, and now I finally have evidence. What's the crime? No, don't tell me, I'll guess… I got it! They tried to destroy modern civilization and create a whole new world! No, wait, that can't be it…"

"Well, actually-"

"Oh, screw it, I'll arrest them for vandalism!" Looker said. "Just look! They almost destroyed the Spear Pillar! You're going down, punks! Take them away, boys! If all goes well, they can even get two months!"

"Two months?!" Kris said. "But, they almost destroyed the whole world!"

"Let's not exaggerate here" Looker said as his police officers woke up Jupiter, Mars and the Galactic Grunts. "Now, I need to collect statements from everyone… hey! Lance! What are you doing here?"

"I recruited these young trainers here to help me solve a crime" Lance replied. "It's my job, right?"

"I don't approve of your methods, Lance!" Looker said, using another stock phrase heard in various movies. "Besides, when was the last time you worked for International Police, huh? You're just working for that other group, uh… Lesbian Stuntmen? Or was it Laxative Supplies…"

"Whatever" Lance said, pushed Looker out of his way and left the Spear Pillar.

Looker looked quite offended, and Cynthia smiled apologetically at him whilst walking away with Lance. Before leaving, she turned around and said goodbye to the group:

"Well, see you later! I'm sorry I can't show my gratitude better, but we'll meet again, right? At the Pokémon League, I mean. Bye!"

"Yeah, bye bye!" Kris shouted. "No need to thank us for saving the world and stuff!"

"Didn't you say that those pixies over there saved the world?" Lucas asked.

"Hey, don't make me come over there!"

"Hang on a second, there's someone missing…" Looker said as the Team Galactic members were taken away. "Where's, uh… that Saturn guy?"

"Oh, he's over there, under my Snorlax" Kris replied nonchalantly and recalled Snorlax back into its ball, revealing the surprisingly unscathed Saturn underneath.

Saturn slowly got up, holding his head like he had a massive hangover, and looked around him. At first, he was quite confused to see his comrades and the legendary Pokémon gone, but suddenly got a greedy look on his face when he saw Uxie, Mesprit and Azelf circling the air just a few feet away from him. The others tried to stop him, but Saturn rushed to the lake trio, trying to capture at least one of them. Saturn grabbed a Poké Ball from his waist and approached Uxie, who was closest to him, ready to chuck a Poké Ball at it, when… it opened its eyes.

As soon as Saturn saw Uxie's opened eyes, the rest of the group covered their own. Saturn and Uxie stared at each other for a few seconds, then Uxie closed its eyes again and Saturn collapsed on the ground, with a completely blank expression on his face. His memory was now erased. Looker sighed.

"Another case of sudden amnesia. Oh well, I suppose he had it coming to him…"

Saturn was taken away, and he didn't seem to resist at all, merely stared in front of him as Looker dragged him away from the Spear Pillar. Lucas looked around him and saw Shane's unconscious body a few feet away from him.

"Hey, should we wake him up?" Lucas asked.

"Nah, there's no rush" Kris said. "Let us enjoy the last few minutes before he starts bothering us again. Right now, I feel better than ever. Those three Pokémon… hey where did they go? Oh well, anyway, those three Pokémon saved me. Now I know that I'm a somebody, not just some obscure person."

"Yeah, I have that feeling every day" Dawn said. "After all, I'm a somebody, and you used to be a nobody. Welcome to the 'somebody'-crowd, Kris!"

"Gee, thanks…"


	37. Any last words?

**Chapter Thirty-seven: **_**Any last words?**_

June 18th: "_I just realized that it has been almost a year since I first left Viridian City and started this stupid odyssey. Time to tell you a true story, my dear log! Just a few days ago, I was cornered by about a hundred Galactic Grunts. Their leader, Cyrus, had awakened about a thousand ancient beasts that kept attacking me, but I managed to distract the criminals. Me and my Pokémon naturally wiped the floor with them. I then turned to Lance's near-dead body. Lance told me that I was his hero and that he was my biggest fan, then gave me a sword that I used to slay the beasts. I then turned to Cyrus, and all of the sudden, my sword had turned into a lightsaber. Me and Cyrus were engaged in a colossal duel when Cyrus chopped off my_-"

"Gee, you're writing some blatant lies, aren't you?"

Shane looked behind him and was shocked to see Dawn peeking over his shoulder, having apparently read every word of Shane's new and completely truthful entry.

"Hey, it's personal!" Shane said.

"Oh, please, I have the right to know" Dawn said. "After all, my parents have more money than Berlusconi and Bill Gates combined!"

Shane, Kris, Lucas and Dawn were now traveling in one, not-too-dynamic group. They were currently in a ferry, heading towards the Pokémon League. Lucas and Kris both challenged Volker, and despite Volkner's constant talk about how he hadn't lost in ages, he went down rather easily, losing to both Lucas and Kris. The latter was quite surprised at Lucas' skills, and the way he could defeat Volkner's powerful electric-type Pokémon even with unevolved, low-level Pokémon. Given with time, Kris could actually grow to like Lucas. As for Dawn… not so much.

Meanwhile, at Route 224...

The place where it all began was looking as beautiful as ever. There were looming Bellsprout and chirping Pidgey all over the place. The sun was shining, the grass was green and everything looked almost bizarrely joyful - except for the chalk outlines drawn on the ground to signify the location of the three bodies found from the exact same location about a year ago. At first glimpse, Route 224 was completely deserted, but by examining carefully, one could see a man snoozing at the very end of the road, near the shore. It was Eusine, but he looked very different. His usually well-combed hair had grown and was untended, he already had a thick, black beard, his clothes were torn and dirty and he had lost weight a significant amount. He kept staring blankly in front of him, mumbling to himself.

With the help of some strange gothic chick, Leaf and Silver were able to access Route 224, which they did by going through the Victory Road first. It didn't take the duo long to see Eusine standing at the end of the road. Silver noticed something even more interesting just near Eusine: the big white rock, which supposedly held some plot-relevant information. Silver wanted to read this in privacy, so he approached Eusine carefully. But since Silver had troubles starting a conversation without insulting the other person, Leaf spoke to Eusine instead:

"Um, hello there. Hi! Can I ask what you're doing?"

It took Eusine a few seconds to realize that someone was talking to him, and he flinched quite a lot when he saw Leaf behind him.

"You're disturbing me!" Eusine yelled. "I'm working here!"

"Sorry, we just-"

"Hey, leave her alone" Silver said, coming to Leaf's defense. "We just wanted to know what you're doing!"

"What am I doing, huh?" Eusine asked, got up and walked up to Silver and Leaf, pointing his dirty finger at them. "I'll tell you. I have been sitting in this very spot for weeks. I am most certain that there is a path that will extend from this route and lead to paradise! Or some other great location like that. But how will I open it?"

"Is that why you have been sitting here?" Leaf asked, genuinely concerned about Eusine's mental health. "Trying to open an invisible path?"

"NO!" Eusine snapped and started walking around maniacally. "I have been sitting here, because I know that _it_ is coming here! Yes, you know what I'm talking about! Suicune, damn it! It has to show up here! It must! And I, the all-powerful Eusine, will get it. The Legendary Society was kind enough to give me a two week leave, but that isn't enough. Not nearly enough! I know it will be here… look at this! Look at it! It's Suicune's feces! And I think it has been marking its territory… I can taste it in the air…"

"Ew! Grody!" Leaf said, but suddenly got more serious when she realized what Eusine was talking about. "Wait, Suicune? You think it's coming here again?"

"I don't think, I know!" Eusine said. "Thinking is for losers. It will come here. And when it does, I shall make it my loyal slave and I shall use it to ride into the sunset, and-"

"Listen, dude, you're really losing it" Silver said. "Did you say your name was Eusine?"

"Yes, but it's pronounced like Eugene" Eusine replied. "No, wait, is it? I don't know…"

"Well, we can always work on the enunciation later" Leaf said. "But right now, you look terrible. You need to rest. Trust me, come back here in a few days to resume your duties. You will be a lot more sharp."

"Well, that thought did cross my mind various times during my stay here…" Eusine said, rubbing his chin thoughtfully. "But what if Suicune comes here when I'm gone?!"

"It won't" Silver said. "Now come on, here. Take this. It's my Crobat. It's larger than normal, so it should be able to fly you to the nearest Pokémon Center. You can do me a favor while you're at it: transfer my Crobat to the Johto Daycare. You got that?"

"Uh, sure.."

Eusine was not happy to leave his spot, but thanks to Silver's ridiculously large Crobat, he nevertheless got out. Now that Eusine was gone, Silver approached the mysterious white rock in privacy while Leaf watched the scenery quietly. She wondered how on earth a simple path could just be invisible, but when she tried to talk Silver about, she saw Silver reading the scribbling on the white rock carefully.

"Found anything yet?"

"No…" Silver muttered as he carefully read and re-read every single name written on the rock. "I have the date written down right here and he became the champion just before Cynthia, so… hah! There!"

"Well, who is it?"

"Man, I have been waiting for this… My father is…"

After getting off the ferry, Kris, Shane, Dawn and Lucas were guided to a bus stop, where they were supposed to wait for the next four hours or so. The bus would then deliver the group to the Pokémon League. The group accepted this, because the alternate would have been walking through the long, dark and puzzle-filled Victory Road and most likely take about a hundred wrong turns before eventually arriving to the League. Of course, Kris would have accepted this as a nice challenge, but the others were reluctant. So, despite Dawn's constant complaining, they sat down on their bags, waiting for their transport.

"Damn it, I'm sweating like a pedophile at a playground" Lucas moaned and took off his cap.

"Yeah, and I can smell it. Disgusting!" Dawn said and moved away from Lucas.

"Well, I'm nervous, OK?" Lucas said as he wiped his forehead with a moist towelette. "I have never been in a Pokémon League Tournament before!"

"Nah, you'll get over it soon…" Kris said, then started reminiscing. "When I first attended the Silver Conference, it felt like someone was squeezing my guts with a steel glove. But I got over it. Just keep reminding yourself: everyone there is just as nervous as you are, and you can exploit that by messing with them to get some cheap laughs."

"I guess so…"

"Plus, there are some helpful side effects" Kris said. "Once you have attended a tournament like that, whether you win or not, normal battles are like a walk in the park. After the Silver Conference, I almost stopped feeling any thrills from battles… except for the battle with Red…"

"You know Red?!" Dawn asked and squeezed past Lucas to listen more carefully. "How? When? Why?"

"You've heard of him?"

"Duh!" Dawn said and dug out a magazine from one of her bags. "When I was still at home, being homeschooled and prepped to become some sort of entrepreneur, I read a whole bunch of Pokémon-related magazines to get rid of the boredom. They talk about Red in just about every issue of 'Pokémon Training Monthly'. Just check this out!"

Dawn gave Kris one, relatively new issue of Pokémon Training Monthly that had a picture of a creepy, smiling Pokémon Trainer surrounded by lots of Pokémon, with the headline: 'Poképhilia?'. Kris opened the page in question and searched for the article about Red.

"Ah, here we go" she said. "Now to read it out loud for some plot exposition: _Red: The Mystery of a Man. It has been about four years or so since Red Trainer, a Pokémon trainer from Pallet Town, started his journey. It took him just a couple of months to collect eight badges from Kanto and get to the Pokémon League. His surprise was great, however, when the Kanto Champion was revealed to be his life-long rival Blue, who had been awarded the title of Champion just hours ago. Despite this, Red overcame this obstacle and defeated Blue on his first try, then becoming the new Champion, who would go undefeated for a long time. Retroactively, the then-leader of the Elite Four, Lance, admitted that Blue's 'victory' over him was not all deserved. 'I always suspected him of cheating, and it wasn't until later when I discovered that Blue was feeding anabolic steroids to his Pokémon.' Horrid!_"

"_After becoming champion, Red held the position, as said, for a long, long time. As news broke of a young trainer being good enough to defeat the Elite Four and his own rival with fair play, everyone wanted to challenge him. But even those who defeated the Elite Four were unable to match Red's skills. As his rival Blue became the Viridian City Gym Leader and faded away from publicity, Red reluctantly remained in the spotlight. However, after being the Champion for about a year, Red had enough. He wanted to resume his adventure and keep getting his Pokémon stronger. While still keeping the status, Red publicly resigned from being the official champ, and was replaced by Lance. So far, Lance has experienced a similar winning streak, not having been defeated once. As for Red himself, he disappeared. Some say he went to Mt. Silver, others say he went to Canada, and some believe that he is Jesus in purgatory. Whatever the case is, we will keep trying to find him so we can come up with stuff to write about him, y'all!_"

As Kris turned the page, the group was greeted with a full-page picture of Red, accompanied by his Pokémon. Dawn sighed wishfully as she watched the photo.

"Isn't he handsome?" she asked.

"Nah, not to me, at least" Lucas grunted and was suddenly disinterested in this trainer.

"Well, the last I saw him, it was at Mt. Silver" Kris thought as she passed the magazine back to Dawn, much to the latter's joy. "He surely was a man of few words. After that, he just disappeared. Sometimes I wonder if I really even faced him at all! Creepy…"

"Hang on a second, Dawn, let me see that picture again!" Shane said and Dawn reluctantly gave Shane the magazine. "Yeah, I know him too" he said after finding the picture again, much to everyone's surprise. "My the stories I could tell… And by 'stories', I mean 'story'."

"Well, I don't want to hear it" Dawn said as she tried to grab the magazine back.

"Who cares, I'm telling it anyway. Anyhoo, it was approximately four years ago, in Viridian City. It was a different time for us: the iPod was slowly replacing the MP3. The Xbox 360 was released, and when it wasn't breaking down or making a horrible noise, people could actually play with it. Back then, no one was using Twitter, and people were actually still using this thing called 'MySpace'. Since I had skipped trainer's school in order to see Peter Jackson's new King Kong movie, I had to attend an extra class late at night. Fortunately, Professor McFleetwood was away at the time, since he was arrested for child molestation (he was acquitted, though). I had this hot substitute teacher, and naturally, I kept throwing down her stuff when she wasn't looking to make her bend over and pick them up, much to my joy. Mind you, it wasn't as good as everyone said, I was just doing it because the others had encouraged me. Anyway, while I was pretending to study, some guy just waltzed in. He didn't say a word: he was just reading stuff out of my notebook! What a chump! I even had to stop him from reading my notes. I even pretended to be nice, and complained about the difficulty of taking notes to him. But he didn't talk at all! And guess what: that was Red. Of course, I later forgot all about that case, but now I suddenly remembered it with surprising clarity…"

"That was a fun story!" Kris said. "So you had met Red earlier. I'm sure he remembers you."

"I'm not so sure about that…" Shane said thoughtfully. "Back then, half of Viridian City looked just like me."

"Hey, guys, look who's there!" Lucas shouted to interrupt this conversation. "Those guys we met in Hearthome."

"No way!"

Kris and Shane were not pleased, but had to admit the truth: May and Brendan were walking towards the bus stop. Brendan was still wearing his pretentious, Horatio Caine-style sunglasses while May was smiling widely despite having to carry around a crapload of luggage in the scorching heat.

"Whew, hi guys!" she panted upon arriving to the bus stop and throwing her luggage on the ground. "What a coincidence seeing you here."

"You just couldn't miss the chance to see me compete, huh, Kris?" Brendan asked and raised his sunglasses to wink at Kris, much to her disgust. "Oh, and hi, Stu!"

"I'm not even going to respond to that" Shane said, but forgot the meaning of that line anyway: "So, hi, Brendan and May! Going to the Pokémon League?"

"Yeah, we and about half of Sinnoh!" Brendan said as he sat down on Lucas' luggage, pushing him away to get some room. "It sure was hard to get in. They only accept about a hundred competitors. But I got in. After all, I know people. _Powerful_ people."

"Well, let's just hope we don't bump into anymore people we kn-"

Kris' talking was interrupted by someone running towards the bus stop in a haste, even though the bus was still miles away from their location. Lucas was happy to see this running person, while the others weren't so much. It was Pearl, his blonde hair sparkling in the sun. As Pearl arrived, he didn't even seem to be exhausted, he just spoke in his usual, annoying, hyperactive manner:

"Hi, Luc, and the rest of you, whoever you are!" he said. "Did I miss the bus?"

"Not even close. Sit down, Pearl" Lucas said and made some room for Pearl, who tried squeezed himself between Lucas and Brendan.

"I might just do that. You, with the sunglasses, move the hell away!"

"Don't touch my shirt!" Brendan said and took some distance from Pearl. "I don't want your bodily waste all over it. It was expensive."

"No it wasn't, they were giving those away free at the Sunyshore Contest Hall" May said.

"Well, as I was saying" Kris started in order to prevent any arguing and annoying name-calling. "I hope that the bus doesn't get crowded with more familiar fac-"

"Hey! Shane!"

Kris sighed as the group turned to see two additional people advancing the bus stop: a brown-haired, happy girl and a red-haired, surly guy. Leaf and Silver. Remembering what Professor Oak told them before she left to Sinnoh, Kris suddenly realized what was going on. Shane, having forgotten all about that conversation, was confused, predictably enough. Leaf waved at Shane, and the latter meekly waved back. Silver didn't acknowledge Shane and Kris in any way, not out of spite, but more out of embarrassment. As Silver just stood by a few feet away from the rest of the group, Leaf happily sat down next to Shane and Kris.

"Wow, it's nice to meet again, it's been a while" she said.

"Uh, yeah, I… hi!" Shane said, not sure what to reply, since he didn't really want to be around Leaf right now. "Well, Leaf, this is Kris."

"Hi!" Kris said and shook hands with Leaf.

"Hi to you, we've met before, haven't we" Leaf said. "Back in Hearthome. I'm-"

"Yeah, your name is Leaf, I get it, no need to announce that to everybody" Kris snarked and gazed at Silver. "So, are you two, like, friends or what?"

"Oh, you know Silver?" Leaf asked. "Yeah, we go way back. He has really been helping me out and I'm repaying the favor. I took him here to Sinnoh, and since I was on a study trip here years ago, I remember it quite well."

"So, why did you come to Sinnoh?" Shane asked.

"Well, I was… uh, nothing important really. But as for Silver, well, I'll let him tell you that. Silver! Come on, don't be a wallflower! Get over here and mingle. I hear that you have already met Shane and Kris here!"

"I have" Silver replied tensely.

"Well, gee, don't be such a flat tire" Leaf said. "Should we have an introduction round here?"

"No, please, we don't even care about those guys" Kris said and briefly glanced at May, Brendan, Dawn, Lucas and Pearl, who were ignoring the conversation of the others and were arguing with each other, with May and Dawn insulting each other with the most creative ways imaginable. "But in all honesty, Silver, what are you doing here at Sinnoh? And what happened to you anyway? You seemed to become a lot nicer back during our Johto misadventure, and then you just disappeared, according to Shane, and I quote 'into some strange portal-thingy'."

"Well, can this conversation wait for later?" Silver asked, being visibly embarrassed about the situation and nervous to talk in front of a big crowd of people. "I just want to say, that… I'm sorry for everything I did to you guys back in Johto. Yes, even to you, Shane."

"Hey, you remembered my name, I like that!" Shane said and got up. "Apology accepted, buddy. Say, you might not remember this because of our amnesia, but I borrowed you fifty bucks when we last met, so-"

"Nice try, Shane, but I actually still remember that incident" Silver deadpanned. "I can't tell you what really happened, though, because I promised not to. But I can tell you what happened afterwards. Later."

"Well, isn't this nice, huh?" Kris said as Silver finally agreed to sit down. "All of us together, heading to the Pokémon League. Some of us compete, some of us watch. If you guys weren't all weird and irritating, this could actually be fun! Now, if I may continue my cut-off sentence: I really hope we don't bump into anymore people we kn-"

"LEAAAAAAF!"

Once again, Kris was unceremoniously interrupted, but no one could see anyone in the vicinity. Finally, Leaf looked up herself to see someone on a Pidgeot flying towards them, shouting at the top of his lungs. It took them a while to recognize him, but it was obviously Timmy, the ever-so-cheerful and annoying bird keeper from Kanto, who had been circling Sinnoh for a month. But instead of his usual, cheerful and optimistic persona, Timmy was enraged, grinding his teeth together and sweating profusely. As soon as his Pidgeot landed, Timmy jumped off and confronted Leaf:

"Finally, I found you!" he shouted and grabbed Leaf's arm. "Come on, let's get out of this horrible hellhole!"

"Are you on mushrooms or something?" Leaf snapped and tried to get away from Timmy's grip. "What do you want from me?"

"Hey, you, let go of her!" Silver said sternly and pushed Timmy away.

"You! Before I bash your head on the pavement, are you Silver?" Timmy asked.

"Yes, and who am I speaking to?" Silver said.

"Not that it's any of your business, but I'm Timmy, Timmy Thebirdkeeper. Seriously, that's my name. I've come to save Leaf from your captivity you… scumbag! Yeah!"

"Timmy, you're being an idiot!" Leaf said and stepped between Timmy and Silver as the others watched.

"Uh, should we do something? They could get hurt!" May said.

"Nah, let them sort it out, I'd love to see a good fight. Come on, gouge his eyes out!" Pearl shouted.

"Who are you shouting at?" Lucas asked.

"Well, whoever" Pearl said. "I just want to see some gore!"

"Listen, Timmy" Leaf said while making sure that Timmy couldn't get his hands on Silver. "I haven't been kidnapped. I have no idea why you are thinking that, but I do know why you're acting like a jerk. And I'm not surprised. This is exactly why I left you in the first place."

"Correction: I dumped you" Timmy said.

"No, your correction would be false, again, I dumped you. Silver is my friend. My _best_ friend, in fact. I voluntarily came here to help him, and for personal reasons, that you could never even begin to understand. You're so damn possessive and neurotic all the time!"

"That's not true…" Timmy muttered, then tried to push Leaf out of her way. "I'll beat up that guy, Silver, anyway! Hah, Silver! What a stupid name! Am I right, Shane?"

"Don't get me involved with this, man" Shane said. "Come on, Silver, beat the crap out of him!"

"I'm not going to beat up anyone, I'm not like that anymore" Silver said, keeping constant eye contact with Timmy. "Listen, Timmy, if you asked me a few months ago, I would have probably kick you in the leg or push you down while your back was turned, or something cowardly like that. But it was Leaf who taught me otherwise. We're friends, and I did not force her to do anything. Just be cool, and we can work this out."

"I… Well, if you… Oh, screw it! You can't tell me to be cool. This is not over. I'll back off now, for Leaf, but when your back is turned, I'll push you off a cliff or something" Timmy raged and sat down, far away from the others.

After Leaf and Silver sat down again, there was a brief moment of awkward silence. Then, May and Dawn resumed their arguing, and this lasted for hours. Finally, May and Dawn had to stop fighting when the bus arrived. By now, May had grabbed some hair from Dawn's head, which made her go berserk and start slapping and clawing May to get revenge. Everyone else just watched on, and eventually Kris had to intervene and stop Dawn from killing May. Kris then forced May and Dawn to call for a temporary truce, at least for the duration of the tournament.

All ten of them eventually got on the bus heading to Pokémon League and scattered around. Timmy sat far away from everyone else, while Dawn specifically forbade anyone from sitting next to her, since she needed two seats. Kris, who somehow ended up sitting next to Shane, was not happy about the turn of events. She couldn't just start traveling alone, because she didn't like that, and it would be quite rude to ditch all of the others, despite them being annoying weirdoes. On the other hand, she also didn't like the fact that she was probably the only sane person in the bus (save for the bus driver, but he seemed to be drunk, so he couldn't be considered 'sane' either). Since she had no one else to talk to, she had to comment about this to Shane, who had partially dozed off:

"Listen, are we seriously going to travel with this band of freaks for the rest of the trip?" Kris muttered.

"Oh, so now it's 'we', is it?" Shane asked.

"Well, I can also ditch you, if you really want to" Kris retorted. "But seriously, sometimes I feel like the only sane man. I mean, woman."

"Well, missy, you're not too perfect, even you have flaws, you know" Shane said.

"Well, of course, I mean everyone has flaws, but there's no reason to start listing them!"

"Ooh, that sounds fun, I'll start listing them right now" Shane said, causing Kris to grunt angrily and close her eyes to avoid getting enraged. "Well, you're kinda bossy, impatient and easy to piss of…"

"Yeah, and you can sometimes be really sarcastic and mean, which isn't too nice" Lucas complained.

"…you tell me how to do things, you don't appreciate my jokes, you keep nagging at me to wash my hair…"

"And you seriously need to buy some new clothes. Seriously" Dawn said, glancing at Kris' outfit.

"…you don't always wear makeup, which makes me embarrassed to be with you, you sometimes hit me when I nearly get both of us killed or almost destroy the world accidentally…"

"And you must be frigid or something. Or a lesbian" Brendan said. "I mean, I used my best moves on you back in Hoenn and you still refused to play 'hide the sausage' with me!"

"…you like No Doubt, you sometimes chew with your mouth open and you seem to think that you're better than me just because you are actually friendly towards people" Shane finished his list. "Yeah, that's the things I can think of."

Kris had crossed her arms and kept her eyes closed during the listing, but when everyone had finished listing her flaws, Kris opened her eyes again and looked like she was keeping herself from punching everyone in the face.

"Are you quite done?" she asked.

"Well, if I had more time, I could come up with more, but I seemed to have lost my pen…" Shane said.

"Fine, but just so you know, I'm not going to hold back on my insults towards you in the future!" Kris stated. "Now, I just have a simple request. Please, let's try to avoid any catfights, name-calling, petty insults or annoying egoism during this tournament, OK? And also, I would hope if we could all try to get along, despite our differences. We don't have to be best friends or anything, but let's just not insult each other and not unleash any legendary monsters on the streets, please."

"Wait, I can't be an annoying egoist even if I win?" Pearl asked. "That's easier said than done."

"Well, to be honest, _Pearl_," Kris said. "I don't think you can win anyway. You're up against people who have had Pokémon battles for decades and who have probably defeated their first gym leader while you were swimming in your dad's junk bag. The odds against your victory are a million to one!"

"You're… You're _mean_" Pearl sobbed. "That's one more fault to the list."

"A million to one?" Lucas asked. "So those odds are good, right?"

"No, they're bad" Kris said, but when Lucas still failed to understand, she gave up.

"Say, I wonder if Damien is going to enter the tournament here?" Shane asked all of the sudden. "I mean, he has popped up in every other tournament we've been."

"Why do you want him to come, I thought you hated him?" Kris asked.

"Well, yeah…" Shane said. "But, uh, it'd still be nice to see him. So I could, uh… tell him off! Yeah."

"Sure…"

After this conversation, the trip towards the Pokémon League went rather fluently. Since the bus driver nearly passed out every fifteen minutes and since the bus had to circle around the Victory Road, the ride took a long, long time. This was not a pleasant experience, and the constant turns mixed with the hot weather made everyone nauseous, especially Dawn.

Since just about everyone knows the drill right about now, the opening ceremony of the Sinnoh Pokémon League Tournament was skipped in order to speed up the process a bit. Kris, Silver, Brendan, Lucas, Leaf and Timmy all entered the tournament as Shane, Dawn and May watched from the sidelines. Unsurprisingly, Damien Zachowski was also among the competitors, as he had arrived to the location with his pimped-out limousine.

The preliminaries went quite well for everyone, except for Timmy, who had troubles focusing and otherwise had lost his touch. He easily lost to a random trainer from Snowpoint City during the preliminaries and was the first one from the group to drop. During the top 16 battles, Leaf dropped out as well. Seeing Leaf go and his own Pokémon being rather exhausted decided to make Silver give up willingly and drop out, thus leaving only some of the group to the top eight. Leaf and Silver found some seats near Shane, May and Dawn from the bleachers and prepared to see how well the others did during the final battles. The extremely hyped announcer was clearly enjoying the battle and his job, exaggerating and commenting on every minor aspect of the tournament, like a bird flying in the sky or a cloud covering the sun. The last eight competitors had gathered into the dressing rooms, and Dawn, being too curious about the preparations and too air-headed to care about the rules, barged into the dressing rooms as well, where the competitors were walking around in circles, nervous about their upcoming battles.

"Hey, guys!" Dawn said and waved at everyone, then walked up to Lucas. "Hi, Lucas! Fine job getting to the top eight. Of course, you could have done better, but whatev."

"Uh, thanks…" Lucas said.

"Anyway, I just thought I could pop up here and give you all some encouragement for the battles and lighten up your day!" Dawn said happily. "You have a battle strategy planned out for what?"

"Well, I already know who I'm up against…" Lucas said, much to the shock of the others.

"Wait, you know already?!" Brendan panicked. "How?!"

"They posted it on that list over there" Lucas said and pointed at a notice posted at the wall.

As everyone rushed there to find out who they were up against, Lucas turned to talk to Dawn again:

"Anyway, they put me up against this Pete Pebbleman guy from Kanto. Sounds like a pushover, I even saw his team. His first Pokémon is a Hippowdon. So I figured I could use my Probopass, because of its strong defensive capabilities…"

Dawn sighed.

"How you got eight badges before, I'll never know" she said. "Look, ground-type attacks have quadruple efficiency against your Probopass. While I would recommend some water- or grass-type next, I think it's more important that you use a Pokémon that can both hit hard at the Hippowdon and protect from its attacks, maybe a flying-type… But you don't have any, so I recommend using your Torterra first. It resists ground-type attacks and you can then hit Hippowdon as hard as possible. Maybe you can even knock it out before the opponent decides to switch it."

"How did you come up with that all of the sudden?" Lucas asked, stunned by Dawn's knowledge.

"Well, you know, when I spent my endless days at home, besides for the days when I occasionally sneaked out, I read a lot of Pokémon-related books and magazines, like I said earlier" Dawn explained. "So, it looks like education paid off, huh. Sorta. Oh, look, the guys are coming! Hi, guys!"

As Kris, Brendan and Pearl returned from the notice, they didn't respond or look very happy at all.

"So, you found out who you're up against?" Lucas asked.

"Yes, unfortunately" Kris deadpanned and prepared to enter the arena. "And I'm up against Brendan. Really, I would have preferred anyone else."

"Oh, sounds like you're afraid that I might kick your girly little ass!" Brendan taunted and laughed, being the only one to do so. "Anyway, don't feel bad. At least you will lose to the best!"

"And I'm up against that horrible blonde, that pretentious bastard who is always being interviewed, that Damien guy" Pearl said. "This is going to be tough. I saw his Pokémon, they were real powerhouses. I might have to inject some substances into my Pokémon…"

"What did you say?!" Lucas shouted, horrified by Pearl's suggestion.

"Relax, just kidding, I would never cheat…" Pearl said, albeit not very truthfully.

"Say, didn't Shane come with you?" Kris asked.

"Oh, no, he wanted to stay at his seat, afraid someone could have taken it from him or spill ketchup on it" Dawn explained. "He told me to tell you good luck, though!"

"Wow, my relief is almost palpable…" Kris said. "That lazy bastard wouldn't even bother to come down here and wish me luck. What a maroon!"

Dawn tried to explain the situation to Kris, but she was already on her way back to the stadium. The rest of the seven contestants walked there as well, accompanied by the crowd cheering and shouting incoherent phrases at them. The contestants stood in a line in the middle of the arena as the over-the-top announcer introduced them one more time:

"_Ladies and gentlemen, welcome back to the quarterfinals, and things are getting wild! We've seen some amazing battles here, some even lasted longer than five minutes! Wow! If you have all returned to your seats after grabbing some refreshments and grade-F hot dogs, then get ready for this spectacular, once-in-a-lifetime show that you only see once every… year. Now that we're in the quarterfinals, time to introduce you the contestants whose names I shall read out loud in no particular order_."

"_First we will see the battles of a young fellow from Celadon City or whatever place in Kanto, Pete Pebbleman. He will be paired up against an even younger fellow, a real fresh-faced bumpkin from Twinleaf Town: Lucas Nicebutdim._"

"_Next, we fill see the battle of another person from Twinleaf Town, who is still in the contest despite the judges attempts to disqualify him: he calls himself the 'blonde-haired lightning', we call him the 'annoying guy who won't leave us alone': Pearl Pearlson! He will battle against the man of the hour, a genius and an unmatched hero, an example to us all: Damien Zachowski from Pallet Town, Kanto. Wow, that Pearl doesn't have a chance, am I right folks? Whoa!_"

"_Moving to the area of less interesting people, we have Brendan Everyman from Petalburg City, Hoenn. He sure has offered us a share of interesting battles, and he has barely kept himself in the contest. What a chump! Anyway, he is going to battle against the only remaining girl (if you can call her that) in the contest: Kris Zimmerman, from New Bark Town, Johto. I guess she learned to battle when fighting against stains in the laundry, huh? Or maybe she got her Pokémon in the kitchen! Hey, stop booing at me!_"

"_And finally, we have Mr. Random (no first name given) from whatever town from whatever region, battling someone… I can't figure out the name… Martin Fernando Enchillada Muchos-Gracias Hemingway Sanchez. Also called 'Fernando' by some. Wow, what a name! What confidence! Amazing!_"

During the crowd's cheering, Shane leaned forward to see the stadium more clearly. The last name was quite interesting to him, but he didn't have binoculars or anything to see the stadium.

"May, give me the binoculars for a minute!" Shane requested.

"Hang on a minute!" May said, her eyes wandering off around the stadium. "Man, that's some hot guy over there at the third row. Yoo-hoo! "

"Please, May, I need to check something out."

"Hold your horses, I bought these binoculars, so - ow! Jerk!"

Since he had little time, Shane had to forcibly grab the binoculars from May and take a close look at the arena. While he was hard to recognize because he wore a completely different attire, Shane could still see that it was Fernando, thanks to the humongous moustache. But this time, he had sunglasses, well-combed hair and a tuxedo. While Shane wondered how Fernando could have gotten there, he had to forget about this, since the tournament was about to start.

Thanks to Dawn's advice, Lucas was able to beat Pete Pebbleman in a three-on-three match. The hyper announcer kept informing the viewers of every single detail of the battle, even the fact that Lucas' Probopass had 'hair in its nose', which was rather obvious to the audience. Lucas advanced to the semifinals, but his friend Pearl was less than successful. In a three-on-three battle against Damien's, Pearl's first two Pokémon, Machamp and Heracross, lost instantly to Damien's well-trained powerhouses. His Infernape was slightly better, but it eventually lost to Damien's Octillery. Damien advanced in the ranks, making his way to the semifinals as well. So did Fernando, who showed spectacular skill in his battles and preferred flashy and demonstrative techniques to win the audience's sympathies, defeating his opponent easily.

Eventually, the quarterfinal was preparing to end with the battle between Kris and Brendan. This was particularly important for Kris, as not only did she want to advance to the semifinals, but she also needed to shut Brendan up once and for all. Even the announcer fell silent when Kris and Brendan sent out their first Pokémon in the arena.

"Mismagius, go!"

"Manectric, go!"

Kris sent out her feminine ghost-type and Brendan decided to go with her fast and agile Manectric. Mismagius launched a Shadow Ball towards Manectric immediately, but the latter was faster, and was able to paralyze Mismagius with Thunder Wave. When Mismagius was helpless, Manectric hit it with Thunderbolt, and a couple of Bites later, Mismagius was down and out, much to Brendan's joy:

"Yes! In your face, suckah!"

"Mismagius, return!" Kris said. "Damn it, this isn't going as well as I thought. But I sure as hell won't be losing to _Brendan_ out of all people. Snorlax, go!"

Kris' second Pokémon of choice was her enormous Snorlax. This time, Manectric's electrical attacks merely tickled Snorlax, and it slowly Body Slammed Manectric unconscious. Brendan recalled Manectric, then sent out his Crawdaunt, a lobster-like Pokémon even Kris had never seen before, so naturally, she had to scan it:

"'_Crawdaunt, the Rogue Pokémon, and the evolved form of Corphish_" Kris read. "_It has an extremely violent nature that compels it to challenge other livings things to battle. A veteran Crawdaunt that has prevailed in hundreds of battles has giant pincers marked with countless scars'_. Well how the hell is that supposed to help me?"

"Hey, are we battling here or not?" Brendan asked. "Move it or lose it!"

"Shut up, Brendan!" Kris yelled. "Snorlax, use Earthquake!"

Snorlax merely needed to slam its body to the ground to cause an earthquake that visibly had Crawdaunt shaken, but not stirred, allowing it to continue. Brendan ordered Crawdaunt to use Crabhammer, but despite the power of the attack, the attack once again just bounced away from Snorlax's thick belly. Next, Kris ordered Snorlax to use Dynamicpunch, which was supposedly super-effective against Crawdaunt. And it was, knocking Crawdaunt out instantly.

"Hah haa!" Kris laughed. "I told you, you shouldn't have engaged me. Well, what's your last Pokémon, Brendan, or do you feel like giving up?"

"You wish! Sceptile, go!"

Brendan's last Pokémon was the evolved form of his very first Pokémon, Treecko. Sceptile was similarly a green, bipedal, lizard-like Pokémon, and had a long neck and a large, thick tail that looked like a palm-tree-branch. Sceptile was also fast, and because Snorlax was already exhausted and wanted to go to sleep, Sceptile defeated Snorlax easily with its trademark attack, Leaf Blade.

"Who's laughing now, bee-yotch?" Brendan yelled and churned the butter for a moment, pulling off some flashy moves. "Uh huh, oh yeah, I'm the greatest!"

"Mellow out, moonwalker, I still have one Pokémon left you know" Kris said. "Feraligatr, go!"

Naturally, Kris' last Pokémon was also her starter, the fearsome Feraligatr with enormous jaws.

"Feraligatr? A water-type?" Brendan scoffed. "You might as well forfeit now. I have the type advantage, so, naturally, I will win this battle. Give it up!"

"We'll see about that, but being so polite as I am, I'm letting _you_ attack first!" Kris said and smiled mischievously.

"So you already know you're going to lose, huh?" Brendan taunted. "Well, I can't blame you. I have practically steamrolled you here. Sceptile, let's make it a one-hit-KO. Run straight at that ugly crocodile thingy and hit it with Leaf Blade!"

Brendan's Sceptile nodded, and just as confidently as its master, it ran towards Kris' Feraligatr, preparing to swing its tail at Feraligatr. For a moment, Kris didn't do anything. Then, just as Sceptile jumped into the air and prepared to use Leaf Blade on Feraligatr:

"Feraligatr, Ice Beam!"

And Feraligatr's speed training hadn't gone to waste. Just before Sceptile attacked, it managed to pull of an attack, and hit Sceptile with Ice Beam point-blank, freezing it entirely and knocking it to the ground. The ice around it shattered and Sceptile was instantly knocked out: Kris had won the match.

"NOOOOOO!" Brendan growled, not because his Pokémon had been knocked out but merely because he lost. "She cheated! I remand a dematch! I mean, I demand a rematch! This is not fair! The weather circumstances… Too much coffee… She manipulated me… Damn it!"

"Well, I'm glad you're not a sore loser or anything like that, Brendan" Kris said as she recalled her Pokémon. "Later!"

The semifinals were commencing in just a few minutes. Once again, tensions in the preparation room were growing, and Fernando was currently surrounded by a bunch of Pokémon: Ditto, Victreebel, Beedrill, Seadra and Dodrio, most of these which he had captured earlier. Curious about Fernando's sudden involvement in the match, Shane marched up to Fernando during the break to ask him some questions.

"Yo, Fernando, whatup?" Shane said as he approached Fernando and his group of Pokémon. "You changed your style since I last saw you, huh?"

"You!" Fernando said and his eyes shifted between his Pokémon and Shane nervously. "Um, yes. Alas, the last time we saw each other might have occurred earlier than you might think."

"You can drop the act, I saw you hiding at the boatyard back in Hoenn" Shane said. "Besides, no one else would come up with a trap like that. I mean, you dropped a piano on those reporters! That was awesome!"

"Well, don't take that as a sign of criticism of the media or anything in-depth like that. Rest assured, the piano was supposed to crush you, not the reporters who actually made a story out of the fact that it was supposed to crush you. Did I mention that the piano was supposed to crush you, by the way? Because it was!"

"Gee, no need to be grumpy" Shane said. "How the hell did you get into the Sinnoh League anyway?"

"Well, since you don't seem to have the intelligence required to rat on me, I shall tell you" Fernando said, lowering his voice and making sure no one was around. "Take a look at these badges."

"Wow, cool!" Shane said as he gazed at Fernando's impressive badge collection. "I never seen this one before. And I don't think any gym has the infinity symbol as their badge. And this badge looks quite phallic…"

"That's because they're fake" Fernando said and grabbed the trouser-snake-shaped badge away from Shane. "Yes, fake badges. That's how I got in. They weren't too accurate, you know. But I implore you, don't tell about them, because otherwise I may have to disembowel you later."

"Tell about what?" Shane asked.

"Yes, that's good."

"No, seriously, tell about what? I already forgot the whole thing!"

Fernando sighed, but gave up the attempt to make Shane understand something. Instead, he continued encouraging his Pokémon while Shane returned to the bleachers. As he sat down between May and Dawn, Dawn turned her attention to Shane.

"Say, why didn't you talk to Kris?" she asked. "I have only seen you guys together for a while, but I think I can obviously see that you want to pin her down and show her your bedroom ceiling!"

"No I don't!" Shane objected. "And the reason why I didn't talk to her was that… Well, quite frankly, I didn't know what to say. I know I usually come across all smart and witty-"

"No you don't" Dawn said.

"Well, anyway, I can't really think of anything to say. I'm afraid I might blurt something inappropriate to Kris or somehow psyche her out and cause her to lose the battle. She knows that I'm rooting for her. Ooh, the semifinals are starting!"

During the eventful semifinal, two battles took place. The first battle was between Kris and Damien, the two people Shane had not predicted seeing battling together. When Damien battled, he looked like he didn't have a care in the world and that he won championships every day. Kris, on the other hand, was nervous and edgy. She kept dropping her Poké Balls and mixing up her attacks, and it was probably this that caused Kris to lose the match. Damien advanced to the finals, and the next match took place between Lucas and Fernando. It seems that Fernando had suffered from the same condition as Kris, but even from a stronger one. He kept sweating profusely and constantly looked at his collection of fake badges. And in the middle of the battle, Fernando broke down and shouted the truth at the top of his lungs, telling everyone that he cheated to get in. Fernando was disqualified, and by this incredibly lucky streak, Lucas was declared the winner: the final battle would take place between Lucas and Damien.

"_Ladies and gentlemen, prepare for absolute mayhem and the most epic battle you have seen in the history of Pokémon League Tournaments ever. This is even better than last year, even though I said the same thing back then! Two incredibly skilled Pokémon Trainers face to face. Damien, the hero and liberator of the Hoenn region, the pretty boy from Pallet Town and a generally nice guy, versus Lucas, some chump who got lucky when his opponent turned out to be a crook. Anyway, let the battles begin. Oh, looks like Lucas is starting the battle with his Luxray. Nice move, but electric-types aren't the most versatile around… Oh, and Damien, as if having predicted this, is fighting back with Parasect, which resists electric-type moves. My, my, one Slash from the claws of Damien's magnificent Parasect and… Luxray is out! Oh, well, Lucas chooses his next Pokémon: and it's a Gastrodon, which somehow seems to be able to battle on land. Strange choice against a grass-type… Oh, but Gastrodon knows Ice Beam, I see! Chilling! Just look at that attack, beautiful! And now Parasect is out. Ladies and gentleman, this is thrilling. This battle might even last for a whole minute! Damien's second Pokémon is… oh, and its Fearow. Clever move, it is unaffected by Gastrodon's ground-type attacks, at least. Gastrodon uses Ice Beam, but… oh, it misses. Damien sure has trained his Fearow well. Fearow is striking with Drill Peck. Ouch, and some sort of goo is flying out of Gastrodon's flesh! That Fearow sure knew where to drill, and I don't mean that in a dirty way or anything. Lucas' last Pokémon is… surprise, surprise, it's his Torterra. Gee, be more creative Lucas. Torterra might no have a lot going against Fearow. Oh, what do you know. That Torterra knows Stone Edge. And now Fearow is down as well! My, my, is this battle going fast. Damn, I'm one bad narrator! What will Damien's final Pokémon be? Wow, a Venusaur! This is the first time during the duration of this tournament that Damien has used it. Looks like the battle between Venusaur and Torterra is going to be quite evenly matched!_"

The stupid announcer was more right than he himself realized: Venusaur and Torterra didn't have any specific attacks that they could use to win easily, so they focused on defending themselves and trying to strike each other with hard, physical hits. But as their speed was just the same, it was only a matter of tiring the opponent. Venusaur had a more slender body, but Torterra absorbed hits better, and it also knew Hyper Beam, which was effective in dealing damage against Damien's Venusaur.

Finally, Damien's Venusaur was panting and barely standing anymore. Damien, who had been biting his lip raw for the duration of the entire battle, realized that his Pokémon would most likely die before he got any results. Therefore, he made an important decision, and made sure that his wireless microphone was on:

"Ladies and gentlemen" he said, making sure he could get everyone's attention. "I knew you all came here to see me, Mr. Damien Zachowski, give this punk the beating of his lifetime, but since I am worried about the health of my Pokémon, I am officially giving up. That is to say: I forfeit!"

"_So, that means…_" the announcer said. "_Lucas Nicebutdim wins! Damn, I did not see this coming! Powerful stuff!_"

While part of the crowd was not happy to see their hero Damien lose, a majority was still cheering and clapping their hands. Lucas was simply standing still in the middle of the arena, like he was frozen. He glanced at his Torterra, who was still standing, if not very exhausted. Finally, it hit him: he had won the tournament. He was only a few victories away from becoming the Pokémon League Champion.

"_And now, Lucas, the traditional choice_" the announcer continued after the cheering had stopped. "_A simple double or nothing. You can either choose to challenge the Elite Four and try to become the champion, or you can stop now, and all you get is a trophy that signifies that you have won first place and most likely will be a famous trainer for about a year until someone else wins this tournament. If you lose to the Elite Four, you will still be somewhat famous, but don't expect any trophies! Choose, damn it!_"

"Well, I have gotten this far already…" Lucas said and scratched his head thoughtfully. "I guess, I… well… I will challenge the Elite Four. Double or nothing!"

"_Atta boy!_" the announcer yelled. "_Yeah! Did you hear that, folks? Lucas is going to compete. Now, let's call the Elite Four over here! And here they are: Aaron, Bertha, Flint, Lucian… Hmm, they're not coming. I said: Aaron, Bertha, Flint and Lucian!_"

The entire audience turned their attention towards a small door where the Elite Four was supposed to come from, and others turned to watch the jumbo screen, where the door was also shown. But no one was coming. After a brief silence, someone finally came, but only one person: a young man with baggy pants, a yellow shirt and a hideous red afro. As Dawn explained to the others watching, this was Flint, one of the members of the Elite Four.

"_Flint, what the hell?_" the announcer asked. "_Where are the others?_"

"I don't know, dude!" Flint moaned. "They didn't come to work today! They must be rapping about something behind my back or whatevers. We can't battle against that guy. What a drag, yo!"

"_Well, under the circumstances… There's no point in making you battle against just Flint, so let's skip past the Elite Four… yeah, you can go now, Flint! Anyway, we shall skip the Elite Four and make you battle the Pokémon League Champion instantly. Please give a warm welcome to… CYNTHIAAAAA!_"

Out of a wide, specifically labeled door, entered Cynthia. She was looking just the same as ever, being tall and having long, blonde hair and black clothes. She calmly accepted the raging applause given to her and signaled the announcer that she was ready to battle. Lucas was given a brief moment to heal his Pokémon using a conveniently placed machine. And without even the slightest exchange, the battle begun:

"Probopass, go!" Lucas shouted.

"Spiritomb, I choose you!" Cynthia yelled.


	38. My Name is Buck

**Chapter Thirty-eight: **_**My Name is Buck**_

"So what that you didn't win? Get over it, these things happen. Seriously, Lucas you did better than any of us! That counts for something, right? Besides, Cynthia is the most powerful trainer in all of Sinnoh and you're just a rookie. How could have you beaten her anyway?"

The entire group was currently in a ferry, once again sailing towards a distant location. Lucas was, needless to say, disappointed after losing to Cynthia during the climactic and incredibly amazing battle. The others, especially Kris and Pearl, tried to cheer him up, but fruitlessly. After the tournament, Damien was being interviewed and once again, his alleged 'heroism' was given a spotlight. The group was so disgusted to hear Damien talking about his love for Pokémon that they had to leave the Pokémon League before going insane. After being arrested due to his counterfeit badges, Fernando disappeared somewhere, but Shane had a sneaking suspicion that he was still going to pop up somewhere to get his metaphorical revenge on Shane for whatever reason. Perhaps Shane was Fernando's _raison d'être_.

The group's next destination was the Battle Zone, a separate island under Sinnoh's jurisdiction, to the northwest of the mainland of the Sinnoh region. The reason were obvious. In Resort Area, one of the 'towns' at the Battle Zone, was the Ribbon Syndicate, a ridiculously snobby club for Coordinators where the Sinnoh Grand Festival was also held. Now that Dawn and May had four ribbons (the methods how they acquired them would be best left untold) they were ready to compete against each other and other potential Coordinators at the Ribbon Syndicate.

Now that Shane was revealed to be the guy writing notes at the school in Viridian City, he wouldn't shut up about his brief encounter with Red. Kris kept reminding him that she had actually battled Red, but this didn't prevent Shane from reciting his story to various people, only to be turned away or severely beaten by rough sailors. Besides that, Kris was enjoying Shane's company, because at least he wasn't involved in petty arguments, vicious rivalries or love triangles. There seemed to be an awful lot of trickery going on. May and Dawn hated each other, and encouraged Brendan and Lucas to hate each other as well, albeit unsuccessfully. Pearl, on the other hand, was secretly jealous over the fact that Lucas actually got further than him during the tournament. Finally, Timmy was angry at Leaf and was constantly trying to think of ways to make Leaf hate Silver. Speaking of Silver himself, he was slowly becoming more social and more accustomed to talking to others. He even had a somewhat pleasant chat with Kris, and Kris discovered that Silver actually had a lot of things going for him and he could actually achieve whatever he wanted. During their talk, Silver also told Kris the reason why he came to Sinnoh. Kris was quite understanding and actually sympathetic towards Silver, but couldn't really think of anything to say in order to console him.

For the rest of the journey, Kris blocked her ears in order to avoid listening to the group's constant whining and ranting. For some reason, everyone seemed to ask about her opinion and her thoughts, even though she just wanted to be left alone. Nevertheless, she tried her best to come up with some ways to comfort the group, who was in shambles because of their personal problems.

In order to avoid all kinds of whining, Shane sought the bar and decided to order their strongest, non-alcholic drink, a Fresca. As he sat down and slurped his stuff, he noticed a young, red-haired trainer sitting near the bar and hitting on a young girl next to him. To hear some cheesy or potentially helpful lines, Shane stealthily moved closer to the trainer in order to eavesdrop on him. But before Shane could hear anything worth hearing, the girl slapped the trainer in the face and left, leading Shane to believe that the trainer's lines weren't so helpful after all. As the trainer rubbed his face and turned around, he flinched when he saw Shane next to him, but attempted to cover up the slapping:

"She'll be back. That's just a little game we play!"

"Sure" Shane said. "I'm Leroy Hemingway, also known as Shane, by the way. You heading to the Battle Zone as well?"

"Hell yeah, you know it, ace!" the trainer said and suddenly hopped off his bar stool and started doing strange battle moves before sitting down again. "Whew! I got to train to the max! My name is Buck. I'm going to train in the rough terrain of Stark Mountain. If you're not doing anything, then you can join me, Durwood!"

"No, the name is Shane, but yeah, I think I could join you" Shane said. "I'm not doing anything right now, and I'm sure my so-called friends don't mind."

"Great! I have a lot of time to talk you about my awesome techniques. You look quite wimpy, so you could use some training yourself. You see-"

"Uh, hang on a moment, Buck. I'd love to hear you badmouth me, but I need to talk to my 'friends' before we get to the Battle Zone."

In a few minutes, the ferry arrived to the Fight Area, one of the three 'towns' located in the Battle Zone, which contained the Battle Tower, the ultimate challenge for trainers that was maintained by Palmer, Pearl's father. Needless to say, Pearl was quite eager to enter the Battle Tower's tournament, but May and Dawn had other plans. They wanted to head to the Resort Area straight away. Since no one really cared about Pearl, they decided to leave him at the Fight Area and continue on to the Resort Area themselves.

When Shane told Kris that he was going to a dangerous, live volcano together with an annoying stranger, Kris was surprisingly understanding and maintained that she didn't care where Shane went. So, as soon as Shane and Buck hopped on dry land, they started planning their route. Shane only had time to say a brief goodbye to Kris when Buck dragged him with him to the Battle Zone.

Leaf, Silver and Timmy were having complications, however, and Timmy was finally going to speak his mind when Leaf was indecisive on whether to go to the Resort Area or stay at Fight Area:

"Look, Leaf, things can't continue this way!" he said. "Either you decide what you are going to do right now, or I'll leave."

"And you still don't get it!" Leaf argued. "I _want_ you to leave! I know things can't continue like this. But you can't seem to get along with Silver, and if that's such an issue with you, then I want you out of here. Go!"

"Fine! I will go… but what will you do?"

"Actually, Leaf, I'm afraid we have to go our separate ways for a while" Silver interrupted. "I already know who _it _is, and now I need to find him. I need to head back to Johto in order to find some clues. But I'll call you"

"I… OK, then. Be safe" Leaf said and sadly looked as Silver walked away.

"Finally, we got rid of that grouch" Timmy said. "_Now_ can I join you?"

"NO!" Leaf shouted. "I'm going to try my luck at the Battle Tower. You get the hell out of this region. If all we goes well, we will never see each other again. Good day!"

Timmy bottled up his emotions in order to avoid bursting into tears or throwing a tantrum, so instead, he prepared his Pidgeot and left the Battle Zone as quickly as possible while Leaf followed Pearl to the Battle Tower. The rest of the group started traveling towards the Ribbon Syndicate.

"So, you're not going to challenge the Battle Tower then, Brendan?" May asked.

"Well, uh…" Brendan filibustered, being rather reluctant to challenge anymore people into battles after losing to Kris. "I… I think that I should come see your contest at the Ribbon Syndicate. After all, I need to cheer you on."

"Aww, isn't that a sweet thought" May said, while Kris was quite ready to vomit. "Lucas, Kris, are you coming?"

"Hey, don't talk to them, tramp, they're my friends!" Dawn yelled and grabbed Lucas by the arm.

"Really? Me too?" Kris asked.

"Well, no, just Lucas, really, but you can come. I need more supporters anyway!"

"Whatever, you spoiled little rich bitch…" May muttered under her breath. "So, shall we get going?"

***

While the others struggled to keep the group together, Shane was blissfully unaware of this as he traveled through Route 226, where he and Buck got to in a surprisingly short time span, and Buck even had time to visit his home at the Survival Area. From Route 226, they turned north to Route 227 and started approaching Stark Mountain, as revealed by the ash falling down, quite like snow.

After spending only few minutes with Buck, Shane was ready to run away. Buck's loud-mouthed and aggressive behavior came across as constant chatter, which just wouldn't stop, as Buck kept talking about himself and how his big brother was an Elite Four member, while he also badmouthed everyone he deemed inferior to him and constantly laughed when Shane kept falling over as he hit rocks and branches. The only reason why Shane still accompanied Buck was that Buck had hinted about the existence of a legendary Pokémon that slept inside Stark Mountain. Buck's quest involved finding some sort of Magma Rock, that would supposedly require the skills of a master trainer. Naturally, Buck had the urge to show off, so he couldn't miss the chance of displaying his skills by picking up the Magma Rock from its location.

When Shane and Buck were approaching Stark Mountain and Buck detailed Shane about his experiences in a bar brawl, that involved a drunken nun, a crazy Stantler and which ended with him beating up everyone and getting together with a young, lustful girl. Buck's stories kind of lost their touch since all of his stories basically ended up in the same conclusion.

But something was happening at Stark Mountain. A man in a lab coat was yelling orders at two women in spacesuit-like uniforms, who were possibly setting explosives near the entrance to Stark Mountain's interior. Buck, who, according to himself 'stood for justice', marched up to the strangely dressed people and demanded an explanation:

"My name is Buck, the finest-looking trainer in all of Sinnoh, and I demand to know what's going on here?"

"Please, Mr. Finest-looking-trainer-in-all-of-Sinnoh, calm yourself" the lab coated man told Buck and turned around to reveal his very familiar, wrinkly face. "We are almost nearing to the state of which we can start our operation, which involves retrieving the Magma Rock."

"Hey, no fair, I was here first!" Buck complained.

"Wait a sec, I remember you!" Shane said and marched forward to the man in the lab coat. "You're that guy working for Team Galactic, the scientist whose name I can't remember but involved a planetary object somehow."

"Charon, you mean."

"Yes, Charon, what are you doing here, yo?" Shane asked.

"Well, after Team Galactic faced a downfall in the most anticlimactic way imaginable and even our backup leader, Saturn, was rendered immobile, I decided to take control of the organization myself" Charon explained. "Unfortunately, the only members I could find were these two harpies that have the integrity to call themselves 'Commanders', Jupiter and Mars. Now, excuse me for one moment. Hey, you two!" he yelled at Jupiter and Mars. "Have you got the explosives in place?"

"Yeah, we have!" Jupiter responded. "We're coming there to detonate it!"

"Why the hell are you blowing it up, there could be people there, and more importantly, I don't get the chance to get the Magma Rock!" Buck moaned.

"Silence, you!" Charon snapped. "You, with the face" he continued, addressing Shane this time. "Could you please make sure that your _friend_, the 'finest-looking-trainer in all of Sinnoh', shuts up? Please! Come on, J and M, it's high time to blow this shithole up, and I mean literally."

"Whatever, 'boss'" Jupiter said, enforcing the sarcastic quotes around 'boss', showing extreme dismay for having to work for Charon. "Here's the controller to the bombs."

"Excellent" Charon said and looked absolutely maniacal when he took the controller. "I feel like a kid in a gun store! I'll just enter the launch code, and… KABOOM! Hey, where's the 'kaboom'? I didn't hear a 'kaboom'! What's going on? '_Out of memory, please install SD-card' _Damn this cheap technology! OK, you two, looks like it's time for Plan B. Since we can't blow up Stark Mountain and then dig up the Magma Rock from the ruins, we'll have to go in and get the rock ourselves."

"You know what, Charon?" Mars asked, causing Charon to be horrified that he wasn't referred to as 'boss'. "I don't like working for you! You're boring! Things were a lot better when Cyrus was in charge, even though I didn't have any idea what I was doing half the time!"

"For once, I agree with you Mars, you crazy bitch" Jupiter said. "Charon, you can do your own dirty work this time."

"You ingrates!" Charon yelled as Jupiter and Mars casually walked away from the volcano. "After all I did for you, bribing those prison officials to let you out! You shall yet see the ingenuity of the great Charon! Just wait! Oh, hell. I'll just blow that thing up the old-fashioned way. Thank goodness for dynamite!"

Charon picked up a cartoonish stick of dynamite from his pocket and prepared to light it, but before he could so, a hand appeared out of nowhere and grabbed Charon's arm, then promptly handcuffed him. Even Shane and Buck were surprised to see none other than Looker arresting Charon.

"Thanks for stalling him, guys" Looker said. "It looks like this is the last we'll ever see of Team Galactic!"

"How did you appear out of nowhere like that?" Shane asked.

"There will be plenty of time for explanations later" Looker replied, hand waving the issue. "Right now, we need to get this guy to court. We've been looking for Charon for a long time. He is suspected for multiple cases of assault, human and Pokémon-related inhumane experiments, theft, murder, arson, jaywalking, fraud and spitting on the sidewalk. He'll go down for at least a year, maybe even two!"

"At least you appeared on time for this one" Shane said. "And make sure Charon doesn't escape from prison, we just saw Jupiter and Mars even though you arrested them just days ago!"

"Hey, don't blame me, blame society" Looker said. "Until we meet again!"

As Looker left with Charon handcuffed to his hand, making constant pleads about him being just a victim of circumstances, Buck once again decided to continue searching for the Magma Rock. But since the place was filled with explosives and was rumored to be so dangerous that Jupiter and Mars didn't want to go there, Shane decided to forget about the whole case, and when Buck said that he was going to use the bushes, Shane ran away from him, hoping to never see him again.

***

Meanwhile, at the Resort Area, the badly exhausted group comprising of Kris, Dawn, Lucas, May and Brendan arrived to the Ribbon Syndicate. After getting past the guards after proving that they both already had four ribbons, they barged into the reception desk, competing about who would get to the desk at first. Kris, Lucas and Brendan got in when May and Kris assured that they were with them. When Dawn grabbed May from her leg and rammed her face on the floor, she got the upper hand and ran to the desk first, where she spoke to the snooty, unfriendly receptionist:

"Hello, I'm here for the Grand Festival!"

"Big surprise, so has everyone else here" the receptionist replied without even taking her eyes off the magazine (Ribbon Fever) she was reading. "But I'm telling you what I tell everyone else. We don't allow just everyone here."

"Well, I've got four ribbons already" Dawn argued.

"Bravo" the receptionist said and clapped her hands in a slow, sarcastic manner. "That makes you eligible to enter this building and walk to this counter, and that's as far as you'll get. We need _money_! If you plan to enter the Grand Festival at all, it's ten thousand whatevers. If you want to stay here and enjoy the full treatment and training before the festival, it's fifty thousand whatevers."

"Hmm, that's quite a lot, but whatever, my family is rich after all…" Dawn said, grabbing her daddy's credit card and handing it to the receptionist. "I'm Dawn Berlitz, by the way."

"Did you say 'Berlitz'?!" the receptionist said loudly, dropping her magazine and actually looking at Dawn. "When would you like your breakfast, ma'am?"

"Hold on a second, I can't afford that!" May moaned. "At Hoenn, entering the Grand Festival was free!"

"Well, at Sinnoh, we do things a little differently" the receptionist said and smiled wickedly before addressing the enormous doorman and the two security guards. "Tim, Dave, Ron, do you mind throwing this poor girl out?"

"No, wait!" Dawn said, then turned to May's direction. "Listen, May, I don't like you, but all of our arguing and fighting would have gone to waste if we couldn't face off in the final contest. So, I'm paying for you as well. No need to thank, me please."

"And those three others… are they getting the royal treatment as well?" the receptionist asked, looking at Kris, Lucas and Brendan like they were just dirt.

"Hey, I should get a discount, my mom, Johanna, is a famous coordinator, after all!" Lucas said.

"Your mother… Johanna Nicebutdim?" the receptionist asked and Lucas nodded. "She was famous all right, but she hasn't paid her membership fees in two years, so she has been disqualified from our elitist ranks."

"No matter, I'll pay for those three as well!" Dawn said.

"Wait, are your parents really going to pay for this?" Kris asked. "I mean, seriously, it's a nice gesture, but your parents don't even know that you're a coordinator! I mean, you were supposed to become Professor Rowan's assistant, according to what you told me!"

"Oh yeah…" Dawn pondered, suddenly remembering this minor fact. "Oh well, I'll fill the PokéDex later, and it's not like my parents can't afford this. They probably have more money than Donald Trump and the Sultan of Bahrain combined."

"'The sultan of Bahrain'?" the receptionist muttered as she typed the order. "OK, so two coordinators and three guests, full treatment. That would be… 160 000 whatevers, please!"

"Here's the credit card, y'all! And here's a little extra moolah for you!"

"Excellent!" the receptionist said. "Now, for the remainder of your stay, just call our staff and they will serve you if needed. Anything you ask it's there. Massages, coaches, alcohol, prostitutes and caddies, we have everything. You can use the pools, the saunas, the golf course, the tennis court, the bar, the bowling alley, the strip club, the whorehouse, the media room, the ridiculously expensive gift shop and other places that I have possibly forgotten. Thank you, and enjoy your stay at the Ribbon Syndicate! For you two coordinators, training and preparation starts tomorrow. And seriously, you two need some Botox if you're going to compete in our hall!"

"Yeah, sure" Dawn said and cheered. "Come on, girls, last one at the sauna is a Magikarp!"

"I'm checking out that whorehouse, I mean, the media room…" Brendan said discreetly. "Lewis, you coming?"

"No, Brendan, it's Lucas, and I'm going to check out the ridiculously expensive gift shop" Lucas said. "I mean, it can't be that expensive. I don't think they're selling ribbons for 999 999 whatevers or something like that."

"Say, Kris, you coming to check out the sauna?" May asked.

"Uh, I'd rather not" Kris replied. "If I'm going to survive with you people, I need to develop an alcohol problem. Thank God for free booze!"


	39. Nightmare on Canalave's Streets

**Chapter Thirty-nine: **_**Nightmare on Canalave's streets**_

June 23rd: "_Well this is sucky. I didn't get to see that legendary Pokémon and I had to walk all the way here from Stark Mountain and now I stepped on a piece of gum! How much more can poor, poor Shane suffer? I'm approaching the snobby building that is the Ribbon Syndicate. In fact, as I write, I'm standing just a few feet away from it. God, that's one ugly ribbon hanging above the door! Boy, Kris better be there. And they better let me in! I got a letter from Kris, which her Honchkrow delivered to me, just yesterday. She wrote that while I'm knee-deep in grass, mud and slime, she's enjoying the royal treatment at the Syndicate. I hope Dawn can pay for my stay as well. I better suck up to her and compliment on her coordinating skills or something…_"

Seeing the dirty and smelly Shane on the door of the Ribbon Syndicate, the doorman nearly threw him out, but Shane nevertheless managed to outwit him and rush to the receptionist to blurt out something about him being friends with the others who had just arrived. As the receptionist didn't understand a word that Shane was saying, the doorman grabbed Shane by the throat and was ready to chuck him out, but at that moment, Dawn walked in, and seeing the situation, paid for Shane's stay as well. Dawn told Shane that Kris was currently in the sauna, relaxing alone while Dawn and May were both practicing for their grand finale.

Shane walked through the empty corridors of the Ribbon Syndicate, and realized that the entire place was almost empty. It would probably get crowded a few days later, during the Grand Festival, but currently, besides the group themselves, there were only the staff and a few miscellaneous rich guests that rarely left their rooms. Being fully clothed and ignoring the 'women only'-sign, Shane barged into the saunas.

Kris was currently in a sauna, all alone, her eyes closed. She had wrapped a towel around her and was more relaxed than ever, without having a care in the world. This moment was effectively ruined when Shane barged in.

"Hi, Kris!"

"Jesus, Shane!" Kris shrieked and flinched a bit when she saw Shane, making sure the towel covered everything. "How did you…?"

"Oh, Dawn paid for me. She's nicer than I thought, really" Shane said.

"Shane, you do realize that this is the women's sauna, right?"

"Well, yeah, but I also knew that you were the only one here…"

"But isn't it a bit odd? I mean, don't you feel awkward or embarrassed or anything, walking here fully clothed when I only have this unfortunately small towel?"

"No, why should I feel awkward?"

"Forget it…" Kris sighed, since Shane wouldn't most likely get the point anytime soon. "What did you want to see me about?"

"Well, it's kind of hot in here, so I'll make it quick" Shane said, regretting that he didn't even take his shoes off before entering. "You're probably wondering why I didn't see you so much during the Sinnoh Tournament or wish you luck or be polite or anything like that. Well, the reasons are quite simple. You see-"

But once again, as Shane was about to deliver a thoughtful and well-rehearsed speech, he was interrupted by something vibrating in his pocket. To those of you who had their minds in the gutter: it was his cell phone.

"Hello? Shane here."

"_Shane, thank goodness I reached you_" said a female voice. "_It's me Cynthia._"

"Oh, hi, I don't even remember giving you my number at any point, but whatever" Shane said. "Whazzup?"

"_No time for small talk, seriously_" Cynthia said anxiously. "_I'm in Canalave City. I need some assistance from fellow LS members, but Lance already left Sinnoh a while ago and I can't reach him. And as I'm the only LS member in Sinnoh, I had to contact you. Get over here as soon as possible. You have a Tropius, right?_"

"Of course, it's always ready and it hasn't flown in a while. But what's the deal?"

"_No time to explain it now, I'll tell you everything when you get here. Come on!_"

"Yeah, yeah, bye!"

Shane angrily put away his phone, sighed and once again had to split from Kris.

"Well, that was Cynthia" Shane explained to the confused-looking Kris. "She told me to come to Canalave City for some reason."

"Don't tell me you lied about being a member of the LS again!" Kris said.

"Of course not, I wouldn't make the same mistake twice!" Shane announced. "Now, we shall resume this conversation as soon as I get back from my once-in-a-lifetime mission. Farewell, and take care, Kris!"

Shane turned around as melodramatically as possible, only to slip on the wet floor and bash his head on the wall. After recovering from this, he left the Ribbon Syndicate despite the expensive fee Dawn paid, and prepared to head towards Canalave City, the nice little town in western Sinnoh.

***

After a few hours of pointless wandering, Shane arrived to Canalave, the port city that he never actually had the chance to visit originally. As the various signs around the city proclaimed, Canalave had an air of exotic and foreign culture, with lots of large ships and smaller ferries moored to the piers. There were various sights to see, such as the Sailor Inn, the gym and the library… and those were the ones, really. Still, after grabbing some lunch and reading a book called '_The Brief History of_ _Slime_' at the library, he remembered his missions and sought Cynthia, who he eventually found, standing in front of a house near the piers.

"Finally, what took you so long?" Cynthia asked immediately upon seeing Shane.

"Hey, it's not like I had a map or anything!" Shane objected. "Anyhow, what's with all the buzz? Why aren't there any people on the streets and why are everyone scared like boy scouts in a Hells Angels summit?"

"First of all, that's a horrible simile!" Cynthia said. "Second of all, everyone are having problems with nightmares. It seems that some Pokémon is causing them around this city, but somehow, the problem is only contained here. The worst case is in this house. Let's take a look."

"If they give us coffee, then I'm in" Shane said as he and Cynthia stepped in.

They walked into the house of a sailor called Eldritch. He worked at the docks and frequently operated ships between Canalave City, Iron Island and Fullmoon Island. He had called Cynthia there because his son was having constant nightmares. Unlike the other inhabitants, who merely suffered nightmares every night, Eldritch's son suffered from them constantly. He wouldn't wake up, he just kept trashing in his sleep, repeating strange phrases over and over:

"All flesh is grass… Dar… Dar… Watching me… It's watching me!"

"Hmm, if I didn't know better, I'd say some Pokémon is watching him. I don't know any Pokémon whose name sounds with 'Dar', though" Shane pondered. "Never fear, though, I know the Heimlich Maneuver!"

Shane grabbed the sleeping boy from the gut and started squeeze-thrusting the boy's abdomen, even though he obviously wasn't choking or anything. Shane made it worse by chanting weird phrases over and over:

"The power of Christ compels you!" Shane yelled. "Heal! Heal! Be gone, evil spirits!"

"Um, are you sure he knows what he's doing? He is an LS member, right?" Eldritch asked Cynthia.

"Quite frankly, I don't know anymore…" Cynthia muttered. "I thought he was, but I'm beginning to doubt it."

"Man, ol' Beelzebub really has gotten this child in his grip" Shane thought as he had to place the boy on his bed again. "Maybe I should call the exorcist…"

"Uh, actually, I already thought of a solution…" Cynthia said. "While you were performing ridiculous moves on that boy, I was thinking. The nightmares are obviously caused by a mythical, evil Pokémon called Darkrai.

"A mythical Pokémon? Sounds gnarly… should we shoot it or blow it up, then?"

"Actually, it can't really help it" Cynthia explained. "It's Dakrai's nature that basically gives people nightmares, which is why no one can get near it or anything. Kinda tragic when you think about it…"

"Yeah, people say that about me, too, I'm nightmare fuel myself" Shane said. "So, how do we cure Eldritch's son, then?"

"There is a way. You should know this already, but Darkrai has a counterpart. It's called Cresselia, the full moon Pokémon, also a legendary one, that basically can cure people from their nightmares. I don't know what else it does and I've never seen it up close, but I think it's time. Rumors say it resides on Fullmoon Island just north from here, and during adventures such as these, rumors turn out to be true. Always."

"Indubitably!" Shane announced. "And…?"

"Well, I'm sure we don't need the whole Cresselia for this. We just need a part of it, something called the Lunar Wing. That's where you come in. I need you to do perform the most dangerous task and extract the lunar wing after I wake Cresselia up and potentially piss it off."

"But how come people are refusing to come outside?" Shane asked.

"Look up to the sky, and there's your answer!" Cynthia said and pointed up.

Shane looked up, and besides noticing that the sun was down and it was already nighttime, there was a strangely large amount of clouds at the sky, meaning that no one could see the sky at all, let alone the sun. Being as dense as he was, Shane didn't notice this until Cynthia pointed it out, but it was certainly weird. Cynthia then explained the situation:

"You see, I have reason to believe that Darkrai not only influences the minds of the people, it also obscures the overall weather. This whole city will turn into a living nightmare, and if this spreads to other towns… then that is going to suck majorly. So, in order to stop this, we need to head to Fullmoon Island and you need to do the work. Got it?"

"Yeah, sounds reasonable" Shane said. "Let's rock and roll!"

When legendary Pokémon were concerned, Shane would always be available. Grateful that Cynthia and Shane came to save his son, Eldritch agreed to give the two a lift to Fullmoon Island. The island in question was a very small island which was largely covered in closed-off forest, which was too thick for expeditions. However, a path had been cleared for convenience. Something about the eerie atmosphere of the island made Shane want to leave, but Cynthia told Shane to find Cresselia while she waited at the boat with Eldritch.

So, under pressure, Shane had to walk through the convenient path towards the dark forest. The trip ended up being surprisingly short in length, but he nevertheless was scared out of his mind. Desperate for company, he grabbed a Poké Ball from his waist and chose the one Pokémon he knew he could count on for company.

"Shrew, come out!"

Out of the Poké Ball arrived Shane's Sandshrew, who was quite happy to get out of its ball, but also gave Shane an angry look.

"Hey, don't look at me like that, Shrew!" Shane said. "I know I haven't used you in a while and I have preferred Otto, but I was a victim of circumstances, damn it! Anyway, I'm letting you out now because every franchise needs a cute mascot, and you're the cutest mascot I know!"

Flattered by Shane's compliments, the naïve Shrew stopped being angry and followed Shane around as he walked towards the clearing. He eventually arrived, and saw that the clearing was illuminated by an ominous light that reflected from the crescent moon-shaped pond at the clearing. And there was Cresselia, hovering mid-air, with its eyes closed. The graceful Pokémon had a blue, swan-like body with a yellow underside. Its head was shaped like a crescent moon and it had purple rings around its body like the planet Saturn as well as pink, ring-like wings. Forgetting that he was supposed to extract a feather from Cresselia's body, Shane grabbed his camera and prepared to take a photo. Shrew signaled Shane to stop, but as it couldn't make a sound, worried that Cresselia could wake up, Shane ignored it and took a photo of Cresselia in order to add it to his clipbook.

But the soft sound of the camera and the minor flash it made caused Cresselia to flinch, awaken and open its eyes. Needless to say, it wasn't happy to be woken up.

"Uh, sorry about that, I was just going to grab a feather from you…" Shane said apologetically. "Um… Shrew! Attack!"

But Shrew already had enough from battling legendaries during its battle with Mew two a long time ago, and it was currently hiding in Shane's pack. It was not a particularly good hiding place, as Shane could see the pack shaking, but Shrew was currently useless.

"Grow a spine, Shrew!" Shane said and picked up another Poké Ball. "OK, Droid, go!"

Next, Shane used his Magnezone, Droid, knowing it could easily resist Cresselia's psychic attacks.

"Droid, paralyze that thingy!" Shane ordered. "Use Thunder Wave!"

Cresselia didn't even have much time to react when Droid used Thunder Wave, wrapping Cresselia up in electricity and preventing it from moving. Seeing his opportunity, Shane ran to Cresselia and yanked a yellow feather out of its body, successfully obtaining the 'Lunar Wing'.

"Yes! I have scored again! OK, Droid, that's enough. Come back!"

Shane recalled Droid back to its ball and shoved the glowing Lunar Wing into his pack. He then turned to leave, completely unaware of the fact that Cresselia had cured its paralysis and was glowing and looked rather angry. Shrew, who briefly popped its head out of Shane's pack, emitted a horrified squeak when it saw Cresselia's angry expression. Shane realized this and turned around, then paralyzed from fear as he saw Cresselia looking like it was ready to blast Shane into oblivion. But instead of attacking, Cresselia soared into the sky incredibly fast, emitting a bright, purple light as it did so. Realizing that he had once again unleashed a dangerous legendary Pokémon, Shane decided to sweep this under the rug and returned to Eldritch's boat like nothing had happened.

"Behold, the Lunar Wing!" Shane announced. "Am I awesome or what?"

"Well, I've got to admit, you did a good job getting it" Cynthia said. "What about Cresselia?"

"Uh… it's safe and sound, unharmed, still sleeping back there. Don't bother to check it or anything, because it might wake up. Seriously, let's go already, don't look at me like I'm lying or anything, because I'm definitely not. Seriously!"

"OK, let's go then, Eldritch" Cynthia said. "Your son will be cured in no time. As for you, Shane, you're not really a member of the Legendary Society, aren't you?"

"How did you know?" Shane gasped.

"For instance, you didn't know what Darkrai was, and I had to explain every single detail about it and Cresselia for you" Cynthia said. "You also offered some odd battle techniques for me, even though I'm obviously the champion and I don't need it. And finally, I took the liberty of contacting Lance while you were grabbing that feather. He told me that you're just a trainee, and in fact, I doubt you'll be a trainee with us any longer."

"Hey, give me a break, will you?" Shane said. "OK, maybe I lied _a little_, but I had good intentions. Besides, I really think I would be a good LS-member. Well, better than Eusine, anyway. You snobs aren't just giving me a chance. Sure, I haven't accomplished anything while you guys are all champions or otherwise accomplished trainers and scholars. And sure, my Pokémon are weak, and sure, my knowledge about things is limited. But surely my enthusiasm more than makes up for it!"

"Well, it doesn't."

"All right, so I'm not a full-time member yet. Can I join the LS, then?" Shane asked.

"I don't get to decide that, you need to ask-"

"Yeah, yeah, I need to ask that Elder Gent guy, I know" Shane groaned.

"So you have already asked him, then? And he said 'no'?"

"Well, it depends on who you ask…" Shane said. "In a way, he also said 'yes'. In a more truthful way, he said 'no'."

"Well, that settles it, then" Cynthia said. "If Mr. Gent didn't deem you good enough to join our Society, then you're not good enough, pure and simple. Personally, I wouldn't even let you scrub our toilets or wash our dishes. In fact, I wouldn't let you near anything important, expensive or fragile."

"Thank you for these kind words…"

***

Despite Cynthia's badmouthing, she allowed Shane to join her when they went to cure Eldritch's son. Basically, all they had to do was wave the feather above the boy, and he was cured from his nightmares in an instant. A few seconds later, he woke up, with no recollection of the incident and no idea that he had been sleeping for two days straight.

"Oh, thank you, you good people!" Eldritch said. "I don't know how to thank you, so I guess I won't. Now get out of my house!"

Next, Cynthia and Shane toured in every house of Canalave City (which didn't take long, mind you), waving the Lunar Wing at everyone, curing them of their nightmares. The feather started glowing more brightly every time someone was cured, and eventually, the entire town was back to normal. More importantly, the Lunar Wing seemed to improve the weather as well. It seems that Darkrai had indeed stationed itself above the clouds of Canalave City, watching the entire town, but the powers of the Cresselia's feather weakened Darkrai enough to cause it to leave.

The dark clouds above Canalave subsided… but they revealed something more disturbing.

"OH MY GOD!" Shane screamed. "HOLY CAPITAL LETTERS!"

"This is not good…" Cynthia muttered.

The sky above Canalave was not normal in any sense of the word. It seemed like there was entire new world at the sky, only hellishly colored, being dark blue, black and purple. The moon or the stars weren't visible at all, instead, the sky was filled with hellishly distorted forms and odd symbols…

"That looks like… the Distortion World…" Cynthia whispered. "How the hell.."

***

A few days later, at the Ribbon Syndicate…

"What? That's an outrage!"

"Sorry, but the rules of the Ribbon Syndicate Hotel clearly say. Once the Grand Festival is over, coordinators AND their friends shall be kicked out until further money is paid up. Now, get out of here or I shall call the police."

"Yeah, well, we don't need this stinking place anyway!" Dawn yelled.

"Yeah, and besides, I left a nasty surprise in the bathrooms!" Brendan said. "So, in your face, you elitist scum!"

After this careless remark, Kris, Dawn, May, Lucas and Brendan were thrown out of the Ribbon Syndicate. The Grand Festival was over. During the thrilling contests, Dawn actually got the upper hand and defeated May - only to be defeated by the popular coordinator Harley in the finals. Just like he did in Hoenn, Harley was again crowned the 'Coordinator of the Year' and placed in the Ribbon Syndicate Hall of Fame, while Dawn and May, who placed second and third respectively, got nothing.

So, without any driving force to continue their wacky odyssey, the group decided to give up. Everyone decided to return home, but Kris didn't want to do so. After all, she had traveled around the world for nearly a year, and yet, besides getting over twenty badges, she hadn't really accomplished anything. No one remembered those who didn't make it to the Pokémon League finals. Still, Kris wasn't going to give up. She knew that there would be a way for her to shine again. She just needed to prove her worth and once and for all accomplish something that would make everyone know that she was a great trainer.

It didn't take long for someone to carelessly look up to the sky. The entire group then stopped and realized the sky above the entire Battle Zone was similarly hellish as the sky above Canalave City. The strange shapes of the Distortion World were visible there as well, and all around Sinnoh, authorities got panicked reports from people, but no one could offer a reasonable explanation, besides Cynthia. As she was still in Canalave City, she decided to get the Legendary Society together as quickly as possible. Shane demanded an explanation, but Cynthia didn't know how to really phrase it:

"Look, Shane, this is something more serious than a boy suffering from nightmares. I have a feeling that just throwing Cyrus to the Distortion World didn't fix the problem. In fact, I believe that only made things worse. We need to get everyone together, and by everyone, I mean _everyone_. Call your friends or something, we need all the help we can get!"


	40. Thirty days, sixteen plates

**THE ORIGINAL ONE**

**Chapter Forty: **_**Thirty days, sixteen plates**_

The adventure in Sinnoh was over. While the region was saved from Team Galactic, it was facing a much bigger threat. The sky above specific locations had been turned into a hellish nightmare, something that resembled the Distortion World quite largely. The strange phenomenon was spotted above Canalave City, the entire Battle Zone, Snowpoint City and some locations around Mt. Coronet.

Our current location was Pallet Town, this small, quiet and peaceful town in southwest Kanto was completely unhinged by the events that took place in Sinnoh. But today, June 27th, it served as the meeting place of the members Legendary Pokémon Society as well as all of the trainers who had come into contact with them. Prior to leaving Sinnoh, Shane called them all to Canalave City, and managed to reach Kris, May, Brendan, Dawn, Lucas, Pearl and even Silver, who still hadn't left Sinnoh despite his threats. Leaf and Timmy were out of reach, though, although Shane hadn't even tried to contact those two.

It was eight in the morning, and after waking up, Professor Oak told his aides to look after the lab while he went away for a while. He walked to a yacht moored just outside Pallet Town, only about a hundred yards away from Oak's lab. The yacht was owned by Celio, a friend of Bill's, who in turn was a member of the Legendary Society as well. Bill had contacted Celio so he could give the Society members a lift every time they needed one. As Oak stepped in, the yacht was extremely crowded, as everyone involved was there. Besides Bill and Celio, there were Lance, Cynthia, Wallace, Steven, Morty and Eusine from the Legendary Society, as well as Shane, Kris, Silver, May, Brendan, Dawn, Lucas and Pearl, who were all forced to help the Society. As everyone had gathered around and crammed into one room, Cynthia prepared to explain the situation:

"All right, everyone, I want to thank you all for coming, especially you, Professor Oak, for taking time from your research."

"Hey, anytime, I wasn't really working anyway" Oak said.

"Um, I have a question" Kris said, raising her arm so that she could talk uninterrupted. "Why did we call just _him_? I know he lives around, but his research is kinda dated, isn't it? Personally, I feel we should have called Professor Elm instead!"

"Oh, shut up, you stupid girl!" Oak said and laughed at Kris to shut her up. "You should know that Elm was my student, and besides, he's too young to have accomplished anything. In fact, whenever I get together with Professor Birch, Professor Rowan, Professor Cozmo and Mr. Pokémon, we love to laugh at Elm, since he's so idealistic and absent-minded."

"Well, nevertheless," Cynthia interrupted when Kris was about to retort. "I think one scientist will suffice. Thank you anyway, Kris. Now, some of you probably don't know the situation, so I'll give you the four-one-one. During our last confrontation with him, Cyrus escaped to the Distortion World, along with Dialga and Palkia. I have studied into it, and it seems that Cyrus can still control their powers even without the Adamant and Lustrous Orbs, which were destroyed. Naturally, the idea of a genocidal madman with the powers of time and space in his hands is kind of troubling."

"Indeed, and that's not all" said Morty, who was holding a book titled '_The myths and legends of Sinnoh_' in his hands. "According to this book, the Distortion World is the home of the legendary Pokémon Giratina. Uh, here's a picture. Try not to go nuts."

The young crowd gathered around the picture, especially Shane, who squeezed past everyone else to get a good glimpse of Giratina. It looked like some sort of demonic monster, in both of its forms. The so-called Altered Forme was standing on its six legs, looking like a gigantic sauropod, while the 'Origin Forme' had a more serpentine appearance, and it could actually float. As a disturbing fact, both forms had six legs, six 'arms' and six wings, further confirming the satanic origin.

"That's one ugly mofo" Shane said.

"And that's the ruler of the underworld, I mean, the Distortion World?" Silver asked.

"Indeed it is" Lance said and placed a flip chart board in a place of the cabin where everyone could see it. "Now, if our suspicions are correct, which they usually are, Cyrus has already gained control of Giratina as well. That means he can control the Distortion World, and the laws of physics don't apply there. By using the dark matter found there, he has opened portals from the Distortion World all over Sinnoh. These portals, as they grow more unstable, can basically fuse the Distortion World with our own. If that happens, Cyrus can gain control of both our worlds, and he will, quite literally, become God."

"One of Cyrus' ex-flunkies, Charon, was just released from prison" Cynthia explained. "Apparently, he got out just by telling the cops about Cyrus' plan. It seems that he wants to gain control of the world and kill everyone he deems unworthy. And that means everyone. Once he has destroyed everything, he will recreate a new world entirely for himself."

"He is trying to justify his takeover by telling that he will spare the Pokémon and just kill the humans, which is somewhat respectable" Steven said.

The other LS-members seemed to nod in agreement, while the others looked at each other nervously. The Society nevertheless refused to continue on this subject, as Cynthia proceeded to tell her plan:

"Anyway, me and Lance were able to came up with a plan that we then developed together with all of the Society members, as well as Elder Gent and the Wise Trio. They are currently at the Hoenn Weather Institute. They're making them tell the people that what they see on the sky is just aurora borealis or something like that."

"And the people actually believe this?" Kris asked.

"Well, in case you haven't noticed, ninety percent of all people aren't too smart either way" Lance told, and briefly glanced at Shane, who apparently wasn't listening but instead stared at a Goldeen swimming nearby.

"Wow, check out the horn on that Goldeen!" Shane said and pointed out of the window.

"Where?" Lucas asked and squeezed next to Shane.

Cynthia sighed at this, but nevertheless continued:

"Either way, there is a reason why we have called all you here today."

"So there is way to stop Cyrus, then?" Kris asked as she pulled Shane away from the window.

"Of course there is" Cynthia said. "And that's where you come in. You would think that, with the powers of Dialga, Palkia and Giratina with him, Cyrus would be unstoppable. But there is a Pokémon that is stronger than all three combined. A Pokémon whose existence has been a subject of debate for centuries. It has been called 'The Original One', and legends go as far to claim that it created the lake guardians and the dragon trio. In fact, the myths even claim that it created the entire universe as we know it. Sorry, no picture available. We call the Pokémon 'Arceus'."

"The ultimate legendary Pokémon, huh…" Shane pondered whilst trying to imagine it in his mind.

"If the ancient myths turn out to be true, and there's no reason to believe that they're not, we can summon Arceus so it can save us lowly humans from Cyrus' destruction" Cynthia said. "I'll let Lance explain how it is supposed to be done. Lance?"

"Thank you, Cynthia" Lance said, with even a hint of smile on his face, but it quickly faded when Lance started talking again. "Now, I don't know how many of you have heard from the 'plates of origin'. There are sixteen of them, all tied to the corresponding elemental types, like fire, grass, water and so on. They also have a special connection to Arceus, and are necessary to summon the creature. Therefore, we need to find them."

"And they're found from… where exactly?" Kris asked, after it became clear that she and Silver were the only ones who understood what Lance was talking about.

"That's the tricky part" Lance replied. "No one knows. The book Morty carries around nevertheless tells that they can be found all over the four regions. We believe that the plates can be found from important locations that have something to do with their related types. We have a list of important locations here, and we all need to gather around the four regions. Once we find all sixteen of them, we need to get to the Spear Pillar. There, we should be able to open up the entrance to the Hall of Origin, the highest place at Mt. Coronet, where Arceus supposedly resides."

"I shall monitor already visited locations from my lab, and I'm sure Celio here will give lifts if needed" Oak said.

"So, perhaps we need to divide locations to everyone. I don't think people want to work alone, so we can also divide us into pairs. Lucas and Pearl, will you be a pair?" Cynthia asked.

"You know it, me and Luc, no one else, and definitely no chicks!" Pearl said immediately, before Lucas could object. "Where do we go?"

"Mt. Silver is a huge area in Johto, and we have already received confirmation that one of the plates is there, so get going" Cynthia said. "So, Dawn and May, are you a pair, or-?"

"NO!" both May and Dawn yelled in unison.

"OK, then work alone, fine by me. Dawn, you can check out the Seafoam Islands. Once you're done, you can move on to the Safari Zone. If you can't find anything from both locations, call me. May, I'll give you the Power Plant and the Rock Tunnel. Try not to get lost!"

"Wait, what about me, then?" Brendan asked loudly.

"You can go with me, if you want" Steven suggested.

"I'd rather eat rusty nails" Brendan said. "What have you got for me?"

"Hmm… you can check out Mt. Moon. Make sure to check that place thoroughly."

"So we need to divide into pairs, huh?" Shane asked as Lucas, Pearl, May, Dawn and Brendan left for their assignments. "So, how about we form a little group on our own, Kris?" he continued suggestively.

"Uh… well, I guess you're the least annoying person here" Kris said. "Say, Silver, do you want to pair up with me?"

"No thanks, but I appreciate the suggestion, Kris" Silver said politely, quite unlike he had been just a while ago. "I have some personal stuff to sort out, and… I'd rather work alone."

"Silver here says he already has sixteen badges, so he can go check out Mt. Silver if it's all right with the rest of you" Oak suggested.

"All right, then, you go there, Silver" Cynthia said. "Finally, Shane and Kris. We have a special assignment for you two. I want you to go through every town in Kanto and ask around for the plates. It's entirely possible that someone has already found them."

"Done and done. Let's go, Kris!" Shane said excitedly, and Kris followed, being less than enthusiastic.

"Hang on a moment, you two" Cynthia said as Shane and Kris left the yacht. "I have something for you."

Cynthia grabbed two strange objects made of stone from her bag and handed them to Kris and Shane: two stone plates, one being brown and other being light green.

"That's two of the plates, so we only have fourteen left to find" Cynthia explained. "The brown one is the Earth Plate and the light green one is the Insect Plate. The reason I'm giving you them is, well… the plates are quite powerful. Not only does every plate has a distinctive quality that reflects the element it is tied to, they have the power to boost the power of specific attacks. For example, the Earth Plate boosts ground-type attacks. I'm afraid those young fellows might want to take advantage of the plates instead of giving them to us. But I trust you can hold these plates safe before we find others. It also gives you the idea of what they look like. They're roughly about the size of a book."

"Yes, I can see that" Kris said.

"Wow, you really trust us that much?" Shane asked.

"Maybe not you" Cynthia said rudely. "But Kris seems trustworthy enough, and you'll do fine if you stick with her."

Shane didn't appreciate Cynthia's rudeness too much, and also was quite jealous because Kris got better treatment, but didn't say anything, mainly because Cynthia had already returned to the yacht before Shane could think of anything to say. With the surprisingly light plates in their bottomless bags, Kris and Shane started walking towards Viridian City, deciding to run a series of questions with the townspeople there. Once they got there, however, it turned out no one had any plates in their possessions nor they had even heard of the said plates. Deciding to pass the ability to stay at Shane's home for a while, Kris and Shane continued walking, this time deciding to get to Pewter City through Viridian Forest. They weren't using Tropius, because Shane had already stored it to Ferguson's Day Care. In fact, Shane was now only carrying his mascot Shrew, his powerhouse Droid and his trustworthy new Otto.

In Viridian Forest, however, something was going on. The usually quiet and daunting forest had been cut down severely, and it was full of people in spacesuit-like uniforms, looking for something. This was strange, because Team Galactic should have had split up by now, and yet they were still active. In fact, Jupiter and Mars were also present, yelling orders at the Galactic Grunts while occasionally insulting each other. Shane and Kris tried to hide in a bush, but unsuccessfully, as Mars' Purugly had already caught their scent.

"Oh, crap…" Kris muttered.

"Ah hah!" Jupiter shouted. "You two, get out of that bush. Show us your worthless faces before we finish you off. Or rather, _I'll_ finish you off and Mars can deal with whatever is left of you. Oh yeah, and come out with your hands up!"

With no way to escape, Kris and Shane obediently walked out of the bush with their hands up and walked in front of Jupiter and Mars, much to their delight.

"Well, well, the gruesome twosome strikes again" Mars quipped. "And here we thought we had already seen the last of you."

"Can the courtesies" Kris said. "What are you doing here?"

"Yeah, I thought you had disbanded or something" Shane said.

"Disbanded?" Jupiter echoed. "Far from it. In fact, we know more than you might think. We have been spying on you ever since you left Sinnoh. We know all about those 'plates' you were talking about."

"Or, to be precise, we only heard that you talked something about 'plates'" Mars admitted. "But our new 'boss', emphasis on the sarcastic quotes, told us more about the meaning of the plates."

"Actually, he only told us that they were powerful and we would need them" Jupiter said. "Anyway, prepare to die. We'll give you a chance to die honorably in a fair battle. Come on, Mars, try not to suck in this battle. Skuntank, go!"

"Yeah, you too, Purugly."

Shane and Kris glanced at each other, then grabbed Poké Balls and prepared to fight as well.

"Otto, go!"

"Glalie, I choose you!"

After spouting their stock phrases, Shane and Kris sent out their Pokémon. Shane used his trusty Buizel, 'Otto', while Kris used her Glalie, which Shane hadn't even seen before. Shane also realized that this was the first time ever when Kris and Shane had actually battled together.

"This is too easy…" Mars taunted. "Purugly, use Thunderbolt at the Buizel!"

"And Skuntank, use Flamethrower at the Glalie!"

Kris and Shane reacted quickly, and instead of ordering attacks, they told Otto and Glalie to quickly change places. They couldn't dodge the attacks, but changing places allowed them to withstand the damage better, and they wouldn't get hit by super-effective attacks.

"Hah haa!" Shane laughed. "Take five, Kris, I'll handle the rest. Otto, use Swift!"

Otto did as ordered, but the attack barely managed to harm Skuntank and Purugly, despite hitting both. Skuntank retorted by using Flamethrower again, and Shane, who had bended over in order to tie his shoelaces, almost got roasted by the attack, but Kris pushed him just in time. Having completely missed the point, Shane was quite insulted to see Kris shoving him in the middle of a battle.

"Come on, Shane, focus!" Kris yelled. "We can defeat them! Ice Beam together, OK?"

"All right, yeah, yeah… Otto, Ice Beam!"

"Glalie, you too!"

Before Jupiter and Mars could issue counterattacks, they got hit by the Ice Beam. The combined power of Otto's and Glalie's attacks was able to freeze Jupiter and Skuntank entirely, and it did the same for their trainers, encasing all four into once block of ice, which reached Jupiter and Mars to the waist, much to their horror. Now that the situation was over and the Grunts were fleeing in terror, Shane angrily turned to Kris:

"You shoved me! That was rude, especially considering we were in the middle of a battle!"

"You really didn't notice?!" Kris shouted in disbelief. "You were almost roasted by a Flamethrower!"

"Well, uh… so what?!" Shane retorted. "This is just typical. People always think that you are the responsible one, that you have saved me from certain death and other accidents a number of times and that you are the responsible, smart and strong one. Even Cynthia thinks that way! What am I then? Just a living joke, huh?"

"Well, it looks like it!"

"Then screw this! I'll hold on to the Insect Plate-"

"Wait, you have it?!" Jupiter screamed as she and Mars struggled to get out of the ice block. "We spent the entire afternoon looking for the damn thing here!"

"Hey, shut up, will ya? We're talking here!" Shane yelled. "Anyway," he said to Kris. "I'm not some child who constantly needs to be watched after. In case you haven't noticed, I managed to do just fine when we were separated."

"Ugh, I can't believe this!" Kris groaned. "I thought you were more mature than this!"

"Well you were wrong" Shane said. "As I was saying, I'll hold on to the Insect Plate and I'll do this thing alone. Yes, you heard me, alone. That was what you wanted anyway, wasn't it? You scuttle back to Cynthia and ask her to give you some other mission, or whatever. In the meantime, _I'll _find the plates myself, thank you very much."

Kris tried to say something, but Shane had already turned around, recalled Buizel and started to walk away. Trying to avoid spouting insults at Shane's direction, Kris had to bite her lip. She then turned around and started walking towards Pallet Town's direction again to forget the childish argument she had.

"Hey, wait a minute, you can't leave us here, it's cold!" Jupiter shouted.

"Relax, stupid, the block will melt soon and we can get our revenge afterwards" Mars said.

"I'm not stupid, you are!"

As Jupiter and Mars continued their pointless scuffling, Shane and Kris walked in the opposite directions. Even though they had a falling out before, they knew they would eventually get to their senses and make up. For now, Shane looked forward to snooping around cities and looking for the plates. At least he wasn't forced to search around dark caves and abandoned buildings. After all, what legendary Pokémon could possibly hide in places like that?

The quest for the plates had begun.


	41. Idiocy Defined

**Chapter Forty-one: **_**Idiocy Defined**_

July 1st: "_Well, it has been four days and I'm currently about to reach Lavender Town. I am probably moving slower than necessary, but on the other hand, it's not like there's a time limit here. I mean, it's not like some crazy villain is about to destroy the world, or- No, wait, that's exactly the case. OK, scratch that. I better start moving a little faster. Anyway, I'm sure glad that I got rid of Kris. Well, except that it's getting kind of lonely here. And by 'kind of lonely', I mean 'really lonely'. In fact, I think I'm losing it. I _am_ currently narrating what I'm writing, even there's no one around…Oh, well._"

It didn't take Shane long to completely forget what he was supposed to do and he only asked about the plates from a limited amount of people. Even though Shane showed the Insect Plate to everyone who had the time or the patience to watch, no one knew where to find similar ones, so Shane was more or less stuck. In order to retain his sanity, he occasionally forced Shrew to listen to him:

"…so, I told her to stop treating me like a child. And don't you say anything, Shrew, because I am a responsible adult and, more importantly, a smart one. Don't you say anything! Anyone could have mistaken that girl in Saffron City for a dude. I mean, she constantly tried to mimic my expressions. She completely deserved to be punched in the nose. What? Yeah, you might be right. I don't think it was very smart to burn down her house. But what could I do? I'm just one man! I merely soaked her house in gasoline and lit the match, but that's it! Oh, and maybe I also gave the fire department wrong directions, but like I said, she deserved it! Anyway, what do you think about these plates, Shrew? No, wait, why I am asking you. You're a Pokémon, you don't know anything! Hah! Ouch! Don't scratch me like that. OK, yeah, I'm sorry. But now that Kris is off our tail, we can finally spend some quality time together. Just you, me, Droid and Otto. No one to stand in our way, no one! Hey, don't plug your ears, I'm sure my other Pokémon are more than happy to listen to my stories. Come on!"

So, immediately upon arriving to Lavender Town, Shane visited the sights of Lavender Town with his Pokémon following him and happily frolicked around the town despite the scary music and the presence of horrible ghosts and depressed people. After being thrown out of the Radio Tower and having lunch at the Departed Souls-café, Shane decided to look for a place to stay in. Being unable to find one, he slept at the Lavender Volunteer Pokémon House.

The next morning, Shane finally started to look for plates. The only logical place where a plate could be found was the Soul House, the replacement for the grave sites of the Pokémon Tower when the latter was demolished for the way of the Radio Tower. But that was the way of the world, after all, the Radio Tower was far more profitable than a huge tower full of graves. Now that all the Channelers got fired, the town could afford important things, like raises for the mayor.

But as Shane stepped into the Soul House, he realized that he wasn't the only one who got the idea. Morty, one of the Society members, was already there, chatting with Mr. Fuji, the friendly old man who lived in Lavender Town.

"Uh, hello" Shane said. "Am I interrupting something?"

"No, not at all, nice to see you, Shane" Morty greeted. "Have you met Mr. Fuji before?"

"Oh my, we have met all right" Fuji said as he happily shook hands with Shane. "Twice, actually. I hope this young man has already learned to control his temper."

"I ain't controlling nothing, old man!"

"Well, anyway, this youngster has been doing some rather wondrous things, Morty" Fuji said. "Not only did he save me from the clutches of Team Rocket a year ago, he also helped me get in touch with my good friend Blaine again."

"Speaking of Blaine, what's up with him?" Shane asked. "Oh, and Mewtwo too, I guess…"

"Mewtwo? Oh, we took good care of it, all right" Fuji explained. "No, we didn't cook it. We actually sent it to a remote, mountainous region called Fiore, where it should be able to live undisturbed. As for Blaine, he's still his usual, cheery-if-not-too-sane self. Even though Cinnabar Island was destroyed, he still lives there, next to the Pokémon Center."

"Say, what are you doing here anyway, Shane?" Morty asked.

"Actually, I'm currently working" Shane lied. "I was just passing through the Soul House, and I thought to myself, are there any plates here, maybe a specific ghost-type related plate…"

"If you mean the Spooky Plate, I already found it" Morty said, giving Shane a gray stone plate.

"Damn it…" Shane muttered. "I mean, good work, Morty. I guess that's one more plate off the list, and only thirteen left."

"Not at all, we're making better progress than you think" Morty said. "It seems that Lucas and Pearl are doing very well for themselves. They're back to being best pals again, and they found the Fist Plate from Mt. Silver. Kiyo, the Karate King of the Fighting Dojo was using it to boost the power of his Pokémon. Rumor is that the boys defeated him and got the plate from him. That means we only have twelve plates left to find."

"Gee, good for them…" Shane mumbled, irritated that even those idiots were able to find a plate before him.

"By the way, you might want to read the writing on that plate" Fuji said. "It might share some important wisdom for you…"

"Oh yeah?" Shane said and turned the plate over, revealing that there indeed was some noticeable scribbling on it. "_'When the universe was created, its shards became this Plate'._ Well, that doesn't tell much."

"Yes, but I think the plates combined might actually tell an important story to us" Morty said. "Now, give it back! Thank you. I need to deliver this to Oak's lab."

"Farewell, my friends" Fuji said as Morty and Shane prepared to leave. "May you lead a long and lustrous life!"

But Shane and Morty barely got to the front door of the Soul House, when they had to confront three strange men in pitch-black uniforms that all had the strange R-symbol in them.

"Ahh! Nazis!" Shane shouted.

"No, we're Team Rocket!" one of the men announced.

"Oh, that's right" Shane said and laughed at his mistake. "Anyway, what the hell? I thought you gave up a long time ago. First your boss Giovanni disappeared and then Kris… Oh, hell, you weren't there. _I_ defeated your new bosses and destroyed your organization!"

"That was you? Don't make me laugh" one Rocket said. "Anyway, the three of us are planning an uprising. We were guarding the Lake of Rage when we suddenly got the news about Team Rocket's downfall. We gave up and returned to Kanto, but then we heard about a rival criminal agency that started to operate in here. This is our turf! We now that they're after plates just like that, so we're stealing their idea and taking that plate. Thank you very much!"

Morty didn't even have time to react when one of the Rocket snatched the Spooky Plate from him. Just as the Rockets were about to run away, a sticky vine appeared from above, grabbing the plate from the Rocket. The cause was found from the roof: it was Fernando, now with a Victreebel who had snatched the Spooky Plate. Fernando was the same as before, this time having dumped his fancy tuxedo and changed back to his classic, Rocket-style attire.

"Sorry about that, colleagues, but the great Fernando is taking this item" Fernando announced from the roof of the Soul House.

"Who the hell are you, and why are you dressed just like us?" one of the lowly Rockets asked.

"What, this is an outrage, don't you know me, even though I referred myself in the third person?" Fernando asked.

"Sorry, nope, haven't heard of you, Ferdinand, or whatever your name was…"

"All right then. I have had enough. I have worked for Team Rocket since I was born. Hell, I have been a loyal member of this fine organization even before it was founded! That has to count for something. I already dressed in a Rocket Uniform before the organization even existed! The great Fernando shall not be ignored anyway. I shall obtain this plate and steal all the others to become a disgustingly rich person! Victreebel, use Acid on these cretins!"

Victreebel shrieked obediently and opened its humongous mouth completely and sprayed purple, burning liquid right on the faces of the three freelance Rockets, causing severe burns and forcing them to run around screaming.

"My eyes, my beautiful eyes!"

"What did we do to deserve this?"

"Come on, fellas, let's split. We shall get our revenge later!" a third Rocket announced melodramatically whilst rubbing his eyes.

As the freelance Rockets ran away, Morty and Shane turned back to Fernando, who apparently had more to say:

"And you, you down there, with the stupid look on his face and the Sandshrew, whoever. Don't think too highly of yourself, but somehow you have managed to be the bane of my existence for a long time. Too long, even! Worse yet, it was your fault that I was disqualified during the Sinnoh Tournament."

"No it wasn't!" Shane said. "You had counterfeit badges."

"Ah, but you were the one who forced me to point it out, hence making me nervous" Fernando reasoned. "But alas, you have also become my _raison d'être_, the only reason why I am still continuing this charade. For years now, I have tried to be a somebody. And for years, I have been doomed to fail in every attempted crime. I have a desire to kill you, because that shall once and for all prove my skills as a supervillain! And so, as the sun rises during the dawn of the day, so does, um… I mean, as the days go by, I… Damn it! I had this written down somewhere…"

As Fernando struggled to remember his dramatic monologue, Morty grabbed a Poké Ball and unleashed his Pokémon, a seven-feet tall, darkly gray ghost-type with one red eye and two humongous arms. As it was something Shane had never seen before, he couldn't miss a chance to scan it:

"_Dusknoir, the Gripper Pokémon, and the evolved form of Dusclops_" Shane read. "_The antenna on its head captures radio waves from the world of spirits that command it to take people there_. Ooh, gnarly."

"All right, Mr. Fernando" Morty said. "Let's settle this reasonably, shall we? I need that Spooky Plate!"

"I will never be reasonable" Fernando said and kicked a cinderblock towards Morty from the roof, albeit missing.

"Well, I was going to thank you for getting rid of those Rockets, but since you're still not giving me the plate back, I have to use excessive force" Morty said. "Dusknoir, Shadow Punch!"

Morty's creepy Dusknoir quickly floated in Fernando's and direction, punching both him and Victreebel away from the roof and flying to the ground, with Fernando shouting something like 'Iregretnothing!' extremely fast. Luckily enough, he had also dropped the Spooky Plate, which Dusknoir picked up and delivered to Morty.

"These things are incredibly dangerous" Morty said, referring to the plate. "No, not in the conventional way. But psychologically. They attract all sorts of shady people, who all want to steal them because they think the plates would bring them fame and fortune. Anyway, I'm taking this back to headquarters. I have plenty of locations to cross off. Speaking of which, have you asked everyone about the plates?"

"Huh? Oh, yes, everyone in Viridian, Pewter, Cerulean and here" Shane lied.

"OK, good" Morty said, and added something more before leaving: "Oh yeah, and we forgot to mention this at the yacht, but we had thirty days to find the plates about five days ago, because that's the time Cyrus will take when he opens up all the portals and destroys the world and junk."

"What? How could you forget to mention that?!" Shane shouted.

"Relax, we still have about… twenty-five days or something left. Well, cheers!"

After being left alone and panicked about the deadline, Shane immediately started asking everyone in Lavender Town about the plates, remembering that there still were twelve left.

***

Not so far away from Shane's current location, was Mt. Moon. Brendan was currently assigned there, and he had spent his five days there basically just walking back and forth between the gift shop and one particular place that he dug from, rather disinterested in the whole thing. He and his Metang were digging quite lazily and didn't seem to get any results, despite hints that the Iron Plate could be there.

His next destination was the highest place of Mt. Moon he could reach, and with some help from his Pokémon, he got into a small cave that seems to lead into the bigger tunnels inside Mt. Moon. Despite the darkness and the creepy sounds of the wind blowing outside, Brendan was surprisingly calm, singing to himself:

"Walking, walking, walking through Mt. Moon, singing, singing, singing what I'm doing soon, I can't think of a rhyme, and I'm running out of time, but it's all good when I'm walking through Mt. Moon… La la lah… Man, I'm good! I should get into writing songs or something."

"Hello, Brendan."

"AAARGH!"

Brendan's cheerful frolicking was interrupted when a person appeared behind him all of the sudden. But as Brendan turned around, ready to punch the person behind him, he realized that it was Steven Stone. This only increased Brendan's urge to hit him, but Brendan restrained himself.

"Sorry to scare you, it's just me" Steven said. "Have you found anything?"

"No!" Brendan replied, his voice echoing in the cave. "What are you doing here anyway? I can very well look after myself, and I told you to stay out!"

"You know, Brendan, I have noticed that you don't seem to like me very much" Steven said, and his Metagross came to the narrow light of his flashlight, standing behind him and looking quite threatening.

"Wow, bravo, I'm surprised you noticed that, and um… yeah…" Brendan stuttered, being visibly afraid of Steven's Metagross.

"But why?"

"Well, you're… _you_!" Brendan said. "You're Steven Stone, former Champion of the Pokémon League, richer than Steve Jobs and Silvio Berlusconi combined, if that comparison hasn't been used yet. Plus, you're handsome and confident and mysterious and all that and girls are always falling for you. And when girls are falling for _you_, they're not falling for _me_! I mean, I'm Brendan! A charming, intelligent, sophisticated and overall great Pokémon Trainer."

"Thanks for the praises, Brendan, but I'm not perfect" Steven said calmly. "And maybe you should work on your personality a bit. First of all, confidence is a good thing, but I don't _think_ chicks dig a guy whose ego is bigger than this mountain."

"Are you suggesting that I may have issues with that?" Brendan asked.

"I'm not suggesting, you have issues with that" Steven retorted. "But I don't know what you're worried about. I'm not trying to hit on May, if that's what you think. In fact, I… Well, let's just say you don't have to worry about the competition. But I'm just wondering, why are you like that anyway? Is it because of some childhood problem, or-"

"Don't try that with me!" Brendan yelled. "I know what you're trying to say, and no, I don't have a problem with my manipulating, power-centric, emotionally abusive and distant father! Me and him have… no problems at all… we don't have anything in common, actually…"

"Besides, I know where you're coming from" Steven said kindly as Brendan looked like he was about to burst into tears soon. "My dad is not that great either. He's always trying to force me to work for Devon only for the sake of his image and his precious corporation. When I was a child, he wouldn't let me do anything even slightly rebellious, dangerous or exciting, because he was worried about his public image."

"Are you going to do something about it?"

"Too late for that" Steven said and shrugged. "But it's not too late for you. What are you, 19? 20? Either way, you have just started your life, Brendan. You still have a chance to patch things up with you and your father. Who knows, maybe that'll help you lead a better life. Wait… look over there!"

Brendan looked at the wall of the cave. It didn't seem like anything out of the ordinary, but Brendan's Metang had crawled to the wall and was touching it, and a book-sized part of the wall started glowing gray. Brendan walked up to the part and realized that he could detach it from the wall. As he grabbed the plate, it stopped glowing, but Steven nevertheless looked excited:

"That's the Iron Plate! You found it!"

"Well, my Metang found it…" Brendan said. "But yeah, you're right, it was technically me, wasn't it? Oh yeah…"

"Flip it over, and read the writing on the back" Steven said. "I've always wanted to know what they have written there…"

"Who's 'they'?"

"Just read the plate, Brendan!"

"OK, OK, mellow out, dude" Brendan said and started reading. "_The power of defeated giants infuses this Plate_. Hmm… that was needlessly cryptic…"

"Well, either way, I can just take it, and-"

"NO!" Brendan yelled and held on to the plate. "_I _found it, after all. Besides, I have looked into things. I got a call from Cynthia. She told me about the 30-day time limit and the effects of the plates. Maybe I can boost up my Metang's powers with this and get it to evolve into a Metagross, like yours!"

"So this is the Beldum I gave you earlier?" Steven asked as he crouched down to look at Brendan's Metang. "It's quite small. And it's body looks frailer then normal. You really need to take better care of it. It's not going to evolve anytime soon."

"All right, I will take better care of it, but it doesn't need to worry about anything with the Iron Plate!" Brendan announced. "And hey… I need to boost up Metang, because I'm challenging dad again. Thanks to a technicality, I managed to defeat him after losing to him twice. But I still want a full, six-on-six match with him. And I want to win! That'll show him. Plus, maybe we can climb on top of Sky Pillar together. After all, it was one of the places in the list, right?"

"Well, right you are…" Steven said as he and Brendan started walking towards the exit of that cave. "But once you have returned from Hoenn, you need to give this plate to us, understand?"

"Yes… Sniff…" Brendan sobbed. "I just want to thank you, for… you know…. I…"

"No need to say it. I understand."

Steven turned around to let Brendan 'cry' in private, but in reality, Brendan had merely faked the whole thing. When Steven's back was turned, Brendan grinned mischievously and prepared to push Steven down from the cliff, hoping that he could make Steven roll down Mt. Moon into his death. But as Brendan paused to think of a good reason for pushing him so he wouldn't be arrested for murder, Steven whistled to call his Skarmory. After thinking a proper excuse, Brendan turned around:

"Hah haa!" Brendan yelled. "Now to push you - AAH!! He's gone. Damn it, I planned this too well again. Oh, crap, I'm slipping!"

(Un)Fortunately Brendan did not suffer any serious injuries as he rolled down Mt. Moon after his failed attempt to push Steven down. His Metang slowly followed, and after Brendan had regained consciousness, he decided to head towards Hoenn, knowing that he could defeat his father this time. Hopefully.


	42. Team Weirdo

**Chapter Forty-two: **_**Team Weirdo**_

July 5th: "_Thanks to my… I mean, thanks to _THEIR _little mix-up, I was forced to backtrack to the cities I just carelessly skimmed through before. We still have about twenty-two days left before the universe implodes or whatever. I already forgot what I was doing. Anyway, I'm currently in Cerulean City, talking to the townspeople and asking them stupid questions. Mostly about the plates, but I also made a (failed) attempt to engage in some casual small-talk. I also noticed that there always seems to be at least one Galactic Grunt following me. It doesn't bother me that much, because they never do anything, and quite frankly, it's rather neat to see someone so interested in me. That's the first time anyone's been interested in me at all!_"

Having taken a job as the janitor of the Cerulean City Gym, Shane had plenty of time to snoop around Cerulean City in case anyone had heard about the plates at all. He also looked everywhere he could find in the gym as well. He believed that Misty had to have one of the plates to boost her powers, but according to her, she had never heard of the plates nor owned one. Shane was unable to believe that a _girl_ could beat him just because of her skills, and still believed that Misty had cheated in the match against him somehow.

As the others were more successful in their plate hunts, Shane decided to take a day off from his janitor's job and relax near the Cerulean river together with Shrew.

"Ah, it's refreshing to have one day without having to clean Pokémon droppings, and I'm sure you agree with me" Shane said, and Shrew nodded in agreement.

Shane had to sit in a perfectly assigned place, though, because he had to make sure his shadow covered Shrew, who didn't really like sunlight. Shane also watched Otto the Buizel swimming in the river and properly relaxed for the first time in days. So, maybe the world was coming to an end, but Shane was relatively unhinged. That, and he was sure that the others would do their part and possibly his as well. At the moment, Shane didn't have a care in the world and believed that nothing could ruin his day… until his tanning was interrupted when someone covered him with his shadow.

"Mhhm?" Shane mumbled as he opened his eyes, and was shocked to see Silver standing next to him. "Eek! I mean, argh! Silver! Please, take my wallet and go!"

"What are you talking about, I just came here to visit you" Silver said and gave Shane a hand getting up. "I was just wondering… why are you _tanning_ when you're supposed to look for plates to prevent Cyrus from destroying the world and whatnot?"

"Well… you could use a tan yourself, dude!" Shane said, unable to think of a witty response. "And why are _you_ wearing such thick clothes, even though it's probably eighty-six degrees out here or something? You're even wearing _gloves_, for crying out loud!"

"Let's change the subject already" Silver deadpanned. "See that pile of rocks at the other side of the river?"

"Yeah, what about it?"

"That was where the Cerulean Cave once stood" Silver explained. "Rumor is that some paranoid old man and some idiotic young guy caused it to collapse about a year ago…"

"I hate when things like that happen" Shane said. "And?"

"Well, my search at Mt. Silver was fruitless. I literally searched it from top to bottom, but I found absolutely _nothing_. But that cave is, or was, home to extremely strong Pokémon, kind of like Mt. Silver. There could as well be a plate or plates still hidden underneath there. We should check it out."

"Aww, man, _we_?" Shane moaned. "I have a day off today! I have been working at the gym as a janitor for four days now, even though it feels like four years."

"Please, Shane, I'm only asking because I need someone to help me navigate that cave. It looks dangerous" Silver said.

"Well, if you're that scared…" Shane thought. "I guess I could help you. Just hold on to me if that creepy cave is getting to you, dude. OK, Shrew, Otto, come on, back into the balls with you. Sorry, you will be getting out again later. Let's go, then, Silver! Up, up, and away!"

Silver knew which strings to pull in order to get Shane moving along with him. The two moved some crucially placed rocks at the ruins of the Cerulean Cave, and were able to climb down there. They then started to look for the plates, but the cave was darker than ever, and the only light they had came from Shane's and Silver's flashlights. Eventually, as they walked deeper into the damp, cold cave, they arrived to a crossing, with paths leading to the left and to the right.

"Well, two ways to go. I suggest we return" Shane said and tried to turn back, but was stopped by Silver.

"Not so fast, chicken" Silver said as he grabbed Shane's shirt to prevent him from leaving. "We need to split up, of course."

"Haven't you watched movies?" Shane asked. "When traveling in caves like this, rule number one should be: no splitting up!

"Come on!" Silver said, this time more threateningly as he pushed Shane and forced him to walk down the left path while he took the right.

Shane muttered to himself and in frustration, kicked rocks and the walls of the cave, being quite reluctant to go on. But since he knew Silver would probably bash his head into the wall if he refused, Shane walked down the path anyway. In order to maintain his sanity, he kept humming 'Jamming' to himself as he looked everywhere when trying to find the plate. Then, his flashlight hit something sparkling for only a brief second.

"AAH! What was that?" Shane yelled and tried to move his flashlight back, but didn't see anything. "Damn. Maybe it's just my imagination… NO, WAIT! There it is again!"

This time, Shane definitely saw something pink and sparkling, hovering mid-air. Shane placed his flashlight in his mouth and extended his arms to catch the thing as he chased it around the cave, yelling at it to stop. Whatever it was, it was moving fast. Shane chased it for several minutes, before eventually getting seriously out of breath. As he panted and frantically looked around him, he finally saw the pink thing again, this time more clearly. A creature resembling a pink feline stayed in his line of view for several seconds, but when Shane, despite his constant huffing, ran where the pink cat was, it disappeared on him again.

"Damn it! Just my luck!" Shane cursed. "And I was sure that it was some kind of mystical Pokémon. And now I don't have any legendaries or any plates. There's nothing here. Just that stupid rock resembling a purple, book-sized tablet. Hey, wait a second… There's a purple plate behind that rock!"

Attached to the wall, there was yet another plate, this time a purple one. Shane detached it from the wall, and it came off quite easily. Curious about the mystical writing, he immediately turned it around to read it.

"This seems to be… the Toxic Plate" Shane muttered. "'_Two beings of time and space set free from the Original One_' it says. Hmm, what a mystery indeed. Hey, why the hell am I talking to myself again? Bizarre… Oh well, at least that's another plate off the list…"

While Shane chased the pink Pokémon around, Silver was walking along the other path inside the Cerulean Cave, constantly looking around him to spot traces of the plate. But he was also looking for something else, something more important, and this was the place where he knew to look from. Before he could think more about that, Silver gazed at the floor of the cave, seeing something shiny and green - another plate. He detached it and read the writing to himself.

"The Meadow Plate, I see…" Silver thought. "It's kind of funny that you can find them rather easily. What have they written at this one… '_Three beings were born to bind time and space_'. Hmm…"

"Hey! You!"

Silver quickly dropped the plate in his pocket and looked around him. Slightly above him, standing on a ledge, was a man. A tall, built man in a suit whose face was somehow obscured by a shadow even though there was only little light in the cave to begin with. Next to him, was a Persian, that looked down on Silver and hissed.

"What are you doing here?" the man asked, but Silver was quiet, and merely stared back. "I asked you a question. Or do you wish to challenge me?"

"Are you Giovanni?" Silver asked.

"I hate when people answer my question with another question… Yes, I am Giovanni!" he said. "The man who was the leader of Team Rocket about four years ago. You got me. What are you going to do, hand me over to the authorities?"

"No, but I do wish to challenge you" Silver said. "Meganium, go!"

Silver chose his stolen starter, Meganium, which had now grown to fully obey and understand its trainer. The green, sauropod-like Pokémon had a large pink flower around its long neck and stamen-like protrusions sprouting from the top of its nose. Giovanni smirked at the sight of this Pokémon and prepared to choose his own.

"I always accept challenges, my young friend, even though you have rudely decided not to share your name" Giovanni said, then turned to his Persian. "All right, Persian, it's your time to shine. Go, use Night Slash!"

Before Persian got to attack, Silver grabbed the Meadow Plate from his pocket and gave it to his Meganium, who grabbed the plate and placed it hanging from its neck. The plate immediately gave Meganium a boost in power, allowing it to dodge Persian's attack and retort with Body Slam. But Persian was fast as well, dodging the Body Slam.

"Persian, Power Gem!" Giovanni shouted.

Persian launched a series of fast-moving, sharp, gem-shaped rocks towards Meganium, and the rocks effectively pummeled down on Meganium's body. But Silver wasn't giving up, and neither was Meganium, as Persian's attack wasn't nearly enough to stop it.

"Now, Meganium, Sunny Day!" Silver ordered.

Meganium extended vines from its body, using them to quickly make a crack in the roof. Persian, who dodged the falling rocks, was then effectively blinded by the sunshine coming from the roof, while Meganium was only strengthened by the sunshine.

"Time to finish up this battle!" Silver said. "Meganium, Solarbeam!"

Charging all the sunlight as possible and drawing power from the Meadow Plate, Meganium launched a devastatingly powerful white beam towards Persian, who couldn't dodge, but was thrown towards the wall of the underground cave. Persian was knocked out in an instant.

"Persian, NO!" Giovanni grunted, but then closed his eyes and actually smiled. "I admit defeat, my young friend, you obviously have trained that Meganium well."

After thanking Meganium for the battle, Silver recalled it into the Poké Ball, then turned to face Giovanni, who was slowly but surely getting closer and closer to Silver. Thanks to the sunlight pouring from the roof the underground cave, Giovanni's face was now fully lit.

"You know, this is a once-in-a-lifetime moment" Giovanni mused as he approached Silver. "I have seen a lot in my life. I grew up in the Viridian Forest, all alone. I started traveling around the globe, visiting places like Johto and Sinnoh. I used several fake names and fake identities, seeing several people just as fake as me along the way. I was even in the Pokémon League Champion of Sinnoh briefly, but that never really worked for me. I am not a man who will just accept his fate as a part of the system. I am a person, and as a person, I have the right to choose my own path. I remember seeing my mother die from an illness caused by a Pokémon… The only person ever close to me died, and on her death bed, she asked me to complete he dream of catching the legendary Pokémon Mew."

"Why are you telling me this?" Silver asked, but Giovanni just continued talking, slowly walking towards Silver with his hands in his pockets.

"I took over Team Rocket, but only to later see it brought down by a mere child. But I also learned something, and I began chasing the dream of my mother and my own goals a little differently. I knew I had to train and become a powerful, feared trainer, because I always knew I had the ability to become something special. And I can see that you want too."

"I do" Silver said and stood completely still as Giovanni also stopped just a few feet away from him. "And that's why I came here. I know who you are, Giovanni Sakaki."

"Hm?"

"You left out a crucial part of your story, Giovanni" Silver said. "What about the part after you became the Champion? You traveled to Johto, founded a family in Cherrygrove City and then later abandoned it, causing the mother of your child to die from grief."

"Where is this angsty story leading to?" Giovanni asked, angry that someone knew so much about him.

"Team Rocket boss, Viridian City Gym Leader, a Pokémon League Champion…" Silver listed. "A lot of powerful titles, but one should probably add 'horrible father' to it…"

"Wait a minute… are you Silver?" Giovanni asked in disbelief. "M-my son?"

"I'm not your son!" Silver shouted. "At least I don't want to be! For over a year now, I have been searching for clues about your existence and you can't believe how disappointed I was when I finally realized who my father was. Now, when I finally met you face to face, my disappointment is even greater."

"Hah! I know you probably won't accept me as your father, but I can't help it" Giovanni scoffed in his usual, smug way, recovering from the shock of meeting his son. "The opportunity knocked. I had the chance to choose between a run-of-the-mill family guy or the leader of a powerful organization. You would probably do the same thing, Silver."

"You don't know me!" Silver said.

"Maybe not, but I would like to" Giovanni said. "Besides, during our encounter, I have learned more about you than you might think. I probably know what the answer is, but I'm still asking you to join me. If you do so, you'll eventually become more powerful than you could ever imagine..."

"You mean I should follow in your footsteps and become the leader of Team Rocket?" Silver chuckled. "Hardy-har-har! Forget about it. I have seen Team Rocket up close more often than necessary. They're despicable!"

"Team Rocket?" Giovanni said. "Perhaps not. I have learned to know when it's the right time to abandon a sinking ship. There has been attempts to revive Team Rocket, but all have been unsuccessful. I have little interest in that anymore. I mean something bigger. Something… wonderful. If you join me, we can do it together. Maybe we can even be father and son for the first time. You would like that, wouldn't you? Yes, I can see it from your expression. Come on. Let's do it together. Let's grab this lousy world from the horns and show it what we're made of. I have a plan ready, but I'm going to need someone to carry on with my legacy. I know more than people might think… What do you say?"

"I… I don't trust you yet, OK?" Silver said. "But… now that the opportunity arises… can't you tell what you're going to do?"

"Not everything yet, unfortunately" Giovanni mused. "All I can say is that it'll blow your mind."

"All right. I'll join you."

Badly injured and bitten by a horde of rabid Zubat, Shane crawled from underneath a pile of rocks and finally got a chance to breathe some fresh air. He was certainly never going to choose Cerulean Cave as his holiday destination, ever! But as he got up and wiped the slime and mud off his clothes, he saw Silver standing next to the remnants of the cave, completely unscathed.

"Hey, man, what the hell? How did you get out?" Shane asked.

"Doesn't matter" Silver said. "Here."

Silver handed the Meadow Plate to Shane, and Shane placed the tablet in his pack to accompany the Toxic Plate.

"All right, that's two more off the list. We are on fire! Hey, who's that guy standing over there?"

"Well, you know how I have been looking for my father for a while now?" Silver asked. "That's him."

"No freaking way!" Shane said. "But that's… that guy! Don Vito, or whoever…"

"The stories about your intelligence don't do you justice, Shane" Silver snarked. "But for now, I'm afraid I'm going to have to drop out from this little quest. If the world is really coming to an end, then I'd like to enjoy the company of my long-lost father for at least a while, no matter who it is. Besides, I'm sure you can find the other plates on time!"

"Wow, you really think I'm going to find them?" Shane asked.

"Well, not _you_!" Silver said. "I meant, like, the others. Those Legendary Society guys and whatnot."

"Gee, thanks" Shane sighed. "Well, I guess this is goodbye, then. I know we got off the wrong foot, but you were actually quite nice to be around with. If you were a bit more nicer and less surly, I could actually like you as a friend. I know we had some trouble in Johto, and… speaking of which, how did you get out of that time portal thingy which I now suddenly remembered?"

"I didn't" Silver said. "Goodbye, Shane!"

Leaving Shane confused, irritated and thirsty at the ruins of the Cerulean Cave, Silver and Giovanni left Cerulean City for good. Giovanni was still wanted by some intelligence agencies, such as the International Police, so he had hidden a helicopter in the Cerulean Cape. Silver told his father that he would have to visit Pewter City first, and Giovanni agreed to pick him up when he was done.

Walking through the familiar path through Mt. Moon, Silver eventually arrived to Pewter City in the matter of hours. The building he sought immediately was the Pewter Museum of Science, and he entered the small house connected to the museum. Since the museum was closed for renovations, the house was not officially occupied, but Silver knew that his best and only friend, Leaf, was living there. But apparently, she was not alone. Silver could hear raised voices from inside the house, and as he stepped in, he saw Leaf arguing with Timmy again:

"… I told you to stay out already! Why is it so hard to understand? It's over, Timmy! I can't even describe all those horrible things you did when we were together, and even moreso after we broke up!"

"And I told you, I got tricked to do all those horrible things" Timmy argued. "I never meant to cheat on you, crash your car, kill your Snubbull or hide those pills in your food! I got duped!"

"By whom, huh?" Leaf asked. "You don't even have any friends! You did all those horrible things, you treated me like I was your property, and let's not get into that video you posted on the Internet!"

"But those guys at that forum wouldn't believe me, I mean, uh…" Timmy blurted. "I mean, that was an accident too!"

"Forget it, Timmy, I… Oh, sorry, Silver, I didn't notice you!" Leaf said and blushed upon seeing Silver.

There was an awkward silence, and Timmy was not all too happy to see Silver. When Timmy failed to notice Leaf's hints to get out, Leaf eventually had to push Timmy outside and lock the door. After spouting insults at the door for a moment, Timmy walked away.

"Sorry you had to see me like that…" Leaf muttered. "I'm not feeling all myself right now."

"I understand" Silver said, realizing that Leaf didn't really want to go into details. "Do you, uh, need help? I mean, are you sure he's not going to try and break in?"

"Nah, he's a bastard, but a relatively harmless one" Leaf said, but nevertheless peeked out of the window to make sure Timmy wasn't around anymore. "I will be fine. What did you want to see me about?"

"Uh, I don't really know how to say this… You have been a good friend of mine for a long time. You have helped me more than I could ever ask for. I want to thank you for that."

"Hey, 'twas nothing!" Leaf said and even smiled a little. "I'm sure you didn't come all the way here to Pewter just to thank me…"

"You read me like an open book" Silver smiled. "But I'm afraid that I have to go now. And by 'go', I mean far away. Indefinitely. I'm sure you have been told about this plate chase?"

"Yes, I have, Cynthia told me about that" Leaf said. "And now that my research has been iced, my career as a trainer has ended and all my friends are either dead or somewhere else, I promised to head to the Ruins of Alph and help Cynthia look for more plates. But hey, life has its ups and downs!"

"Uh huh…" Silver said, and now saying what he had to say became almost painful. "Well, anyway, I really mean 'indefinitely'. I'm not going to look for anymore plates. The others can take care of that. I met my father-"

"Oh, you did? That's fantastic! Congratulations!" Leaf cheered.

"Yeah, thanks, but please, let me finish!" Silver said and pushed Leaf away in order to avoid getting hugged by her. "Me and him agreed to go away to do something important. I'm sorry that you never found out if that Suicune killed your friend or not, but our project actually is related to that, kinda. I can't tell you about it, sorry, but we are going away for a long time. In fact, if this goes as planned, we probably won't be seeing each other again. Ever."

"Oh. That's a… bummer" Leaf said and sniffed. "Well, uh… You do what you have to do, then. I'll be fine, trust me. No, really. Please, I don't need your sympathy!"

"I know you don't" Silver said. "But I need to feel sympathy for you. Believe me, if all goes as planned, this is will benefit everyone. Including you. Farewell!"

Neither Silver of Leaf liked sappy goodbyes, so a laconic 'farewell' was the best way to say goodbye. The _film noir_-like atmosphere was completed by the fact that it started raining when Silver walked away from the house until he faded away, leaving Leaf alone, staring at the same spot where Silver had disappeared from. Alas, a scene like this could only work in visual media!

* * *

It was raining all around Kanto, apparently, and Dawn had to experience this personally, as she walked through the endless cold mud, hoping that she would find shelter soon. Her outfit wasn't the best one to wear in a raging rainstorm, but she was currently walking along Route 7, and was only a short walk away from Lavender Town. Needless to say, she hadn't found any plates from Seafoam Islands or the Safari Zone, and quite frankly, she hadn't really tried her best either. She attended a contest in Fuchsia City, and actually managed to win a ribbon, stunning the inexperienced coordinators of Kanto with her skills.

Finally, as Dawn thought she could pass out, she arrived to Lavender Town and immediately sought the Pokémon Center, where she healed her Pokémon and dried her clothes, ready to change into a yet another similar outfit. But unfortunately, there was someone in the Center that was even worse for Dawn's hair than the rain - May.

"Damn it, you cow!" Dawn shouted. "Why do you always have to be in places where I am, huh?"

"Shut up!" May said. "Instead of whining, feast your eyes on this!"

May grabbed an indigo-colored stone tablet from her bag: the Dread Plate, which powered up dark-type moves. She showed it to Dawn, but nevertheless kept it away from her so Dawn couldn't grab it and take the credit for finding it.

"It looks like I found a plate, and you didn't. Funny, huh?" May taunted. "Let's hear what it says on the back. '_Two make matter and three make spirit, shaping the world_'. Wow, sounds important. My plate must be crucial for the purposes of saving the world."

"Pfft, so you managed to walk around the dark and smelly Rock Tunnel for days, and you found one little piece of stone inside it. What an accomplishment! I'm surprised they didn't give you a _medal_ or something…"

"Whatever, Dawn. All I know is that I'm not behind on my plate quota. Also, I got a ribbon from Cerulean City!"

"So what?" Dawn argued. "I got a plate from Fuchsia. So, I win!"

"No you don't!"

"Excuse me, ladies."

Dawn and May stopped their arguing when they realized that Lance had somehow materialized next to them, apparently having walked up to them during their fight.

"So, have you had any success?" Lance asked.

"We sure have, Mr. Lance" May said obsequiously. "Here, this is the Dread Plate. You hold on to that, you are the expert, after all!"

"Oh, give me a break…" Dawn sighed.

"Thank you" Lance said. "Now, I hope you're not wasting time just arguing here. If you have already been through your assigned locations, then get back to Pallet Town. Celio will deliver you to Sinnoh, we need more people to go through the locations there. I just got back from there, but only because I have something important to do here."

"Oh, what?" Dawn inquired immediately, pushing May aside. "I can help!"

"Hey, I can help too!" May said.

"You two?" Lance asked and scratched his head thoughtfully. "I don't know… You're not exactly the type of backup I need for this. But on the other hand, if all goes as planned, you just basically need to stay out of the way if possible."

"Super-duper!" May announced. "So, what's up?"

"I'll tell you as we go" Lance said and turned around to leave. "Come on, move it or lose it."

"B-but it's raining…" Dawn stuttered.

"I said, _move it or lose it_!"

So, even though Dawn hadn't even dried herself out yet, she followed Lance and May out of town. Since Lance didn't drive a car, they had to get to their destination using Lance's Dragonite. Because of the breezing wind and the cold rain, the experience was not too pleasant for Dawn and May, but Lance seemed to be rather unhinged by this. He casually explained his plan to Dawn and May whilst flying towards Saffron City.

"Here's the situation!" Lance yelled so the girls could hear him through the breeze. "We have been getting odd reports from Saffron City. It seems that Silph Co has been closed for a week now due to some 'renovation', but the workers there have been somewhat suspicious. I'm surprised that Team Galactic has managed to be under our very noses for that far."

"So that's their base of operations?" May asked.

"Yes, but I have no idea who's running things. It can't be Cyrus, because I don't think he is able to get back from the Distortion World whenever he wants to. Of course, I _could _be wrong…"

Saffron City was suffering from the same sky-related phenomenon as the many places in Sinnoh, although it could not really be seen due to the constant rain. Because the Galactic Grunt guarding the entrance to Silph Co was sleeping, Lance and the girls were able to enter the building. Silph Co itself was quite larger from the inside than it looked, and for some reason, there were warp pads scattered all over the building. Thankfully, there was also an elevator, so Lance, Dawn and May went straight to the eleventh floor. In the top floor, the group saw a map posted on the wall. Someone had marked locations around all four regions: Canalave City, the Battle Zone, Snowpoint City, the Sky Pillar in Hoenn, the Tin Tower, the Whirl Islands… Besides that, the room was quite dark and full of strange contraptions that didn't seem to serve no other purpose than to make the room look as threatening as possible. It worked. The most disturbing things were the apparent human and Pokémon parts in the drawers…

"What is it?" asked a man who appeared from behind one machine. "Why are you disturbing me?"

This man was the Team Galactic scientist wearing a lab coat over his uniform, the creepy, purple-haired guy with the red glasses: Charon.

"You? What are you doing here?" Dawn asked.

"I could ask the same from you, but I assume that the response wouldn't be the one that I was after…" Charon said. "I'm asking you again. Why are you disturbing my privacy?"

"You're running Team Galactic again, I see" Lance stated. "Why and how?"

"Interesting question, you caped crusader" Charon sneered. "It was quite simple. After I got out from prison thanks to a technicality, I forced Team Galactic to start working for me again, then disguised myself and the gang as flooring inspectors and forced Silph Co to shut down in order for us to take the place over. Trust me, I know about the plates."

"You're bluffing, Charon!"

"No I'm not. Granted, their origin and purpose is still somewhat hazy to me, but their powers are clear to me. If I equip Pokémon with them, no one could stand in my way…"

"What about all these machines?" May asked. "And that map?"

"Irrelevant. For now, all I need to do is get rid of you. I am an important scientist, damn it. I discovered a Pokémon! How I yearned to make the world a better place for them, not us… The plates are the ultimate way, and I know I can get my hands on as many as possible. There's only one person who can stand in my way: Cyrus. But trust me, he won't be a bother once I-"

Charon was interrupted when a cold breeze entered the room. This was strange, as no windows were open. The power in the room went out, and items around the room started flying about, smashing into the walls. Out of nowhere, a black portal appeared in the middle of the room. The blue-haired, emotionless and scarred Galactic leader, Cyrus, stepped out of the portal, glaring at Charon. The others watched in confusion as to how Cyrus had gotten there from the Distortion World. Cyrus didn't say a word to anyone, simply grabbed the Red Chain, now modeled like a scepter, and pointed it towards Charon.

"M-master Cyrus…"

"Cram the excuses, Charon" Cyrus said. "You're bothering me. I don't want to be bothered. Goodbye."

Charon tried to think of a good thing to say before dying, possibly some good last words or an excuse for Cyrus to spare his life, but he thought too long. Cyrus blasted Charon with a red beam of energy, which knocked Charon to the floor indefinitely. He didn't get up.

"Holy crap…" Dawn muttered.

"Don't overreact about it. He's dead. It happens to everyone" Cyrus stated. "This is the reason why I despise emotion so much. You wouldn't understand."

"What the hell, Cyrus?" Lance shouted. "And furthermore, what are you doing? You need to stop before it's too late. You just don't get it! You're destroying yourself while you're destroying us!"

"Fine. Then so be it" Cyrus said calmly. "I have no plans to continue this pointless chat. You people will be next."

But Dawn and May reacted even before Cyrus did. They both grabbed Poké Balls at the exact same time, calling out Empoleon and Blaziken, respectively. They stood in front of their trainers, preventing Cyrus from doing anything. Instead, Cyrus retreated back to his portal, then disappeared just as abruptly as he had arrived. The lights turned back on again and everything seemed to be normal once more. May carefully walked to Charon's body and seemed to try his pulse.

"Forget it, woman, he's dead!" Dawn said.

May didn't respond. Instead, she grabbed the dead Charon's jacket and searched the pockets. First, she found a brown plate, the Stone Plate, with writing on the back. '_The Original One breathed alone when the universe came_', it said. May also found something that resembled a journal of Charon's or something similar. As Dawn and Lance watched on the background, May opened the journal and started reading.

"Oh my God…" she said after reading a bit, sounding like she had a cold. "Listen to this… '_I have decided to name this most wonderful Pokémon 'Rotom'. Simple though it may be, Rotom emerged to me from the motor of a lawn mover. Motor and Rotom, surely the link was obvious?_'. '_Rotom is a fantastic Pokémon that requires extensive observation and analysis. The fact that it can turn invisible is merely the beginning. What makes Rotom so unique is its ability to enter and operate machinery_.' '_Rotom and I became best friends. However, a feeling of mischief got the better of me one day. Seeing Rotom hovering, I decided to startle it - normally I would not. Perhaps frightened, Rotom discharged power beyond its usual range. I fell, stunned, into the arms of unconsciousness. When I came to, my friend was gone. Don't chastise yourself, the fault is mine, I said, but my friend was not around to hear the words that poured out._' '_My search for Rotom carried me far from home. It was in the town's rubbish heap that I again found my old toy robot. Curiously, our eyes met, then the robot waved hand as if in greeting. I knew then that I had my found my lost friend. I ran to it and hugged Rotom tight, talking on and on. The robot's eyes lit up happily as I held it. I'm certain that, within it, Rotom was emitting lots of electricity. Somehow, I felt I could understand Rotom's thoughts better than before. Also, I realized we could remain friends throughout our lives_…' And it ends there…"

"Well, I guess even bad men can love their Pokeymans, no?" Dawn said.

"Either way, he's dead now. I guess one could say he had it coming to him" Lance stated, much to the horror of Dawn and May. "Anyway, now that we have the Stone Plate, that's one more plate to cross off the list. And you two definitely need to learn some co-operation. That is why I'm sending you two to Johto so you can search the Ice Path."

"What?"

"That's an outrage! I'm not going with her!"

"Sorry, but you have to!" Lance said sternly before preparing to leave Silph Co. "As far as I'm concerned, this meeting is adjourned. I want you two to head straight to the Ice Path, and do it as soon as possible, please. I'm tired of having to listen you two arguing all the time."


	43. Revelations

**Chapter Forty-three: **_**Revelations**_

Eusine was back at Route 224, in Sinnoh. Even though Silver had tried to warn him to stay away, Eusine had returned to the location, and despite being tidy and clean just a few days ago, he was now unshaven, ragged and skinny again. He had spent days roasting a marshmallow and waiting for his favorite Pokémon Suicune. But even though he kept staring at the entrance to the Seabreak Path, it refused to open, and the only thing that Eusine saw was the ocean. After staring at the same blank spot for hours, he sighed and looked down on the ground.

"It's hopeless…" he muttered. "I wonder if I should give up already. I have basically eaten just these marshmallows and fried Rattata for three days now… Hey, wait"

Just as Eusine had looked the other way, something had happened at the road. The Seabreak Path was open. A long extension had appeared to Route 224: a narrow, flower-covered road that leaded to the Flower Paradise, an island far in the northeast from Sinnoh. As Eusine stood up, he saw something important in the middle of all the flowers. A small Pokémon that looked like a hedgehog, with a white body, green fur and two pink flowers at the sides of its head.

"Hey, it's that legendary Pokémon!" Eusine said to himself. "That Sho… She… Hang on, let me the check the book… Shaymin! Yes, that's Shaymin! Come here, you little thing. Come to uncle Eusine, so he can capture you… Come on…"

As Eusine approached Shaymin and the entrance to the Seabreak Path, it transformed in front of his very eyes. Its legs grew taller, causing it to look more canine, and its eyes grew bigger as well. Most importantly, it grew two flat, white ears that resembled wings. These 'wings' allowed it to hover in the air, and it then signaled Eusine to follow it and started to fly towards the end of the Seabreak Path, the mystical Flower Paradise.

"Of course. Shaymin is obviously leading me to Suicune, allowing me to solve this mystery and take the credit!" Eusine announced. "Here I come!"

Despite not having even moved in days, Eusine was in good enough shape to run after Shaymin, but not without huffing and puffing constantly and holding his chest as he ran. Shaymin was constantly just a few feet away from him, flying through the Seabreak Path. There was an endless body of water all around him, so Eusine tried to avoid falling to the sea. As he kept his eyes peeled at the graceful new form of the Shaymin, Eusine grabbed a Poké Ball from his belt, unable to resist the temptation of capturing Shaymin.

"This journey would be useless if I wouldn't get some legendary Pokémon!" Eusine said. "Shaymin, you're mi- AAAH!"

But Shaymin had realized that Eusine was about to capture it. Seeing that Eusine was not trustworthy, it flew away at an incredible speed, and the Seabreak Path around Eusine simply disappeared. When it did, Eusine fell into the ocean, far away from the coast, nearly drowning…

***

While the others worked their assess off looking for plates all over the world, Kris had returned home. She had searched all over everywhere and managed to find the Flame Plate from Mt. Ember, and now she deemed herself worthy of a rest. Quite exhausted by the trip, Kris was now finishing dinner that her mother had served to her. Unfortunately, with the free dinner came the free lecture on what to do with her life:

"…and I keep telling you to settle down. Face it, this Pokémon journey is over. You have already competed in three league tournaments, and you haven't even gotten to the semifinals even once. You obviously need work on that. Maybe I could get you a job from Professor Elm's lab. You could move into a nice house here in New Bark Town, find a nice man to settle down with and carry on with your life. Say, what happened to that nice boy you were here with earlier?"

"Mom, first of all, he was not a boy, he was an adult already" Kris said, sounding more tired than ever. "And I'm an adult too! So you can't tell me what to do with my life!"

"That's a bit rude coming from a girl whose account I send money to every week!"

"Like I said earlier, mom, I don't need that money. I have asked you to stop many times. As trite as it may sound, I'm not a little girl anymore!"

DING-DONG!

"Oh, that's the doorbell…" Mrs. Zimmerman said upon hearing this unnecessary sound effect. "I'll be right back. They're probably Jehovah's Witnesses or something."

Kris' mom walked to the door so Kris could finish her dinner in peace, but this attempt was foiled when her mom still kept yelling at her:

"Kris! Two friends of yours are here, and they're here to ask you come out and play with them!"

"For the love of God, mom, I'm twenty-three!" Kris yelled as she walked to the door to see who was visiting her. "Yes, who is it? Damn it…"

While Kris was actually hoping to see Jehovah's Witnesses or Mormons on her front step, she was instead confronted by the widely smiling May and Dawn, who had arrived to Johto for some reason and were resisting the urge to beat up each other.

"Yes, what do you want? And more importantly, how did you know where I live?" Kris asked.

"There'll be plenty of time for explanations later, Kris" May said. "But Lance told us to head to the Ice Path, and-"

"Let me guess, to find a plate? An ice-type related, most likely?" Kris said. "It's predictable."

"Well, it would be really nice if you'd come with us!" Dawn said, trying to suck up on Kris.

"What's the catch?" Kris asked, recognizing this pathetic attempt immediately.

"OK, we'll be honest with you" May said. "We're coordinators, and we're two attractive young girls, especially _moi_. It's pretty hard for us to defend ourselves and who knows what kind of perverts we might come across. We also keep arguing with each other and we need someone to prevent us from killing each other. Also, we're too lazy to look for the Ice Path ourselves!"

"We also bought you this nice jacket!" Dawn said and cheerfully gave Kris a blue winter jacket, something that was quite ridiculous to wear in July. "Now come on, come with us!"

"I know I'm going to regret this, but what the hell, I need some change anyway. And I really need to visit Kanto anyway" Kris said. "Let's go."

So, after sufficient persuasion, Kris agreed to come, following May and Dawn as they walked north towards Blackthorn City. From there on, their destination would be the Ice Path, a cave which Kris remembered all too clearly, as it was cold, full of randomly appearing Zubat, it had the tendency to collapse on people… But the biggest concern Kris had was that the mysterious Mask of Ice would attack again. Kris hadn't heard of this man in ages, and yet she had the sneaking suspicion that he was still around somewhere.

Kris was able to think things like this despite the fact that May and Dawn kept arguing. This time, the matter of debate was mostly contest- and romance-related stuff, and since Kris didn't know anything about either subjects, she decided to stay away from the debate for as long as possible. When the group entered the Ice Path, Kris told the two girls to keep their voices in order to keep the cave from collapsing. In reality, she just wanted the two to stop arguing for a moment.

As the warmly clothed girls ventured deeper into the cave, they finally heard some noise, some signs that there was indeed someone in the cave. And indeed there was: standing on a pile of snow, at the other side of the chamber the group was in, was the Mask of Ice, with the blue mask covering his face and a thick layer of ice covering his body.

"**FOOLS!**" the Mask shouted, his voice echoing in the cave and being even louder because of the mask. "**YOU HAVE DARED TO VENTURE IN THE CAVE BELONGING TO THE MASK OF ICE! FOR THAT YOU SHALL PAY!**"^

"I think the guy's serious, he's talking in bold!" May whimpered, staring at the horrifying villain.

"Come on, you two" Kris said. "This guy is a pushover, I tell you. OK, maybe that Mask allows him to talk in a threatening voice, freeze objects by touching them and command ice-type Pokémon at will, but-"

"Yeah, you guys take care of this, I'm going on ahead…" Dawn said, but seemed to be frozen by fear, as she nevertheless did not move.

"**COME, MY PRETTIES! I COMMAND YOU!**"

With just a wave of his hand, the Mask of Ice summoned a horde of ice-type Pokémon. Everywhere you looked, in every possible corner, there was a Pokémon. Dozens of different species, Swinub, Piloswine, Zubat, Golbat, Jynx, Delibird and the likes were ready to attack Kris, Dawn and May, who stood helpless in the middle of the chamber as the Mask of Ice laughed triumphantly.

"Oh, crap…" Kris said.

"There's a freaking army of those Pokémon" May whispered. "I want my mommy!"

"Shut up, you!" Kris hissed. "Sure, there's dozens of Pokémon all waiting to murder us, but if we take out the Mask of Ice, we don't have to worry about them."

"So what's your plan, genius?" Dawn asked.

"Simple. We make our Pokémon fight this bunch and distract the Mask of Ice long enough so we can sneak up to him ourselves, take off the mask and break into pieces, thus disarming him and making him one of us."

"Sounds like a plan…"

"Yeah, but you two really need to work together this time!" Kris said. "Seriously, if you suddenly start arguing about irrelevant things, those Pokémon will make sherbet out of us!"

"Understood. Blaziken, go!" May ordered.

"Go, Empoleon!" Dawn said.

"As for me… Snorlax, get ready!" Kris yelled.

These three Pokémon stood in front of May, Dawn and Kris, forming a sort of barricade to stop the ice-types from killing them. The Mask of Ice merely signaled four Piloswine and two Golbat, who started charging towards Snorlax, Empoleon and Blaziken at full speed. But despite their advantage in sheer numbers, the Ice Path's wild Pokémon didn't stand a chance against these three massive Pokémon. Blaziken's Flamethrower torched the Piloswine while Empoleon's Ice Beam immediately stopped the Golbat on their tracks. Those that managed to evade the attacks merely bounced off Snorlax's belly while Snorlax just stood still and calmly watched the situation.

May and Dawn took turns when yelling out orders to their Pokémon, effectively blocking all the enemy attacks while they were at it. Even they themselves were quite surprised how well they were working together after all.

While the attention of the Pokémon were focused, Kris ran towards the ledge where the Mask of Ice was standing. He didn't see a thing as Kris slowly creeped up to him, then grabbed his mask.

"Hah haa! Now I got…. OUCH! My hand!"

"**NICE TRY!**" the Mask laughed as he turned around to face Kris, who had a nasty frostbite in her hand. The Masked Man's voice echoed in the cave, nearly splitting Kris' ears. "**THIS MASK IS MADE OUT OF ICE, YOU FOOLISH TRAMP. YOU DIDN'T REALLY THINK YOU COULD JUST GRAB WITH YOUR BARE HANDS?**"

"Well, I guess not…" Kris whimpered as she rubbed her hand. "And stop shouting, I'm right in front of you, maniac!"

"**WHATEVER. PREPARE TO BE **- Ouch!"

But the Mask's pointless and pretentious blustering was rudely interrupted. Out of the blue, May and Dawn jumped on the ledge and tackled the Mask of Ice to the ground, causing his mask to come off. The Mask tried reach for it, but Kris reacted quickly and kicked the ice mask off the ledge, shattering it in pieces.

"NO!" the Mask shouted, his voice sounding normal and being muffled when he was pressed down on the ground by Dawn and May.

Next, Kris roughly turned the Mask of Ice around - only to reveal the face of a creepy, frightened scientist: Dr. Gideon.

"Gideon! You were the Mask of Ice?!"

"Uh… yes I was" he said, his voice trembling a bit. "Hah! You certainly did not know about that, so I… um… oh, crap, who am I kidding? I'm not him!"

"Who is this loser anyway?" Dawn asked.

"This creepy scientist guy I had to face a few times in Johto, he got arrested, but that doesn't really mean anything" Kris said bitterly. "Hey, how did you two get up on the ledge anyway?"

"Easy. I stood on May's shoulders and then pulled her up here" Dawn said, then high-fived May.

"You know, Kris, I have been wrong about Dawn, she's not a prissy rich bitch like I thought!" May said.

"Yeah, and May is not an emotionally crippled, overly naïve and annoying slut like _I_ thought" Dawn said.

"You know, I think I liked it better when you were arguing" Kris deadpanned. "But at least you learned something. Now let's get some answers out from him. Snorlax, come over and here and sit on this guy!"

"Please, don't!" Gideon pled. "I'll tell you everything. Or, I would, but I don't know anything! The Mask of Ice gave me orders, but I had no idea who he really was. Then, when I escaped… I mean, when I was acquitted, I returned to meet the Mask, but he was gone. Then I found that mask from one of his drawers and realized the powers I could have if I actually used it. But it really broke much easier than I thought."

"OK, I guess I'll believe you. Get him up, girls!"

May and Dawn both grabbed one of Dr. Gideon's arms, and Kris searched Gideon's pockets. First, she came across a Poké Ball.

"What's in here?" she asked.

"My Porygon-Z, so- I mean, it's an empty ball, open it up!"

"Sorry, not fast enough" Kris stated. "Nice try, though."

"Porygon-Z?" Dawn inquired, keeping her PokéDex ready.

"Yeah. In case you didn't know, I was on the research team that helped the Pokémon Lab creating Porygon" Gideon announced proudly as the girls started escorting him out of the cave. "Over the years, I've been thinking about new ways to make it stronger. First, I installed an upgrade that evolved it to Porygon2. Then, I found out that corrupting Porygon's data would most likely enhance its capabilities instead of hampering it, so I installed the Dubious Disc that I developed, further evolving it to Porygon-Z."

"Fascinating" Kris stated and searched for more stuff from Gideon's pocket. "What do we have here, hmm?"

The next thing Kris found was a light blue plate, the Icicle Plate, at which the others watched in awe.

"Do you know what this is, Gideon?" Kris asked, holding the plate up.

"I found it from here, thought it could be valuable or something… is it?"

"Nah…" Kris said and kept on walking. "There's some more writing here, though. '_The powers of plates are shared among Pokémon_'."

"Funny, you'd think these things, these writings on the plates, would form a full-fledged story or something…" May pondered.

"Well, that's unlikely…" Kris thought, placing the Icicle Plate in her pack. "Anyway, I think we should mail this thing and all the other plates you may have found to… Ah, we're outside!"

As Kris, May, Dawn and Gideon got out from the Ice Path, the climate was noticeably warmer, allowing them to get rid of their thick jackets. But before the group could continue walking, they saw that the Ice Path was completely surrounded by police cars. The group stopped, glancing at the police with confused looks on their faces, but the situation was saved when Looker ran to the group while shouting something at the other cops:

"Hold it, don't shoot, these are friends of mine, they have successfully arrested Dr. Gideon!" he said. "Nice work, girls. I'll take it from here. I can see the headlines now '_Heroic police officer saves three young women from the clutches of an evil scientist_'… Has a nice ring to it, no? OK, I'll proceed to take credit for this arrest since you're not objecting or anything. Bye!"

The girls didn't even have a chance to say anything when Looker grabbed Dr. Gideon, handcuffed him and dragged him to the nearest cop car. The other officers applauded, all praising Looker instead of Kris, Dawn and May, who had actually done the work. But it didn't matter to them anyway: the Icicle Plate was salvaged, and only four remained.

"So, what next?" May asked.

"I've been thinking… now that we still have plenty of time before the deadline and we've done our share of work, maybe we should enter a contest together" Dawn suggested. "You know, it'd be nice to compete without the pressure of having a serious contest. We should just enter one for fun!"

"I hear you, this thing is getting me exhausted…" May said.

"Um, don't we have other things to worry about?" Kris said. "Like, saving the world and stuff?"

"The world will do fine" May said. "Besides, we saw Cyrus the other day. He was bonkers."

"I hear that" Dawn said.

Kris sighed, and told Dawn and May that she was going to find the nearest bathroom. Instead, she just ditched them, not wanting to deal with their stupidity. She walked all the way back to New Bark Town and briefly visited Professor Elm's laboratory, where he was very delved on his research. He didn't even hear Kris entering his laboratory.

"Um, Professor?" Kris said. "Mind if I come in?"

"What, oh, sorry my dear…" Elm blurted. "I was in the middle of, a… uh… thing! Anyway, good to see you, it's been a while. I hope you're keeping busy."

"I am, and it seems that you are, too."

"Oh, yes, sorry about the mess…" Elm said, looking at the miscellaneous piles of paper scattered all over the lab. "I'm going to another seminar, and this time, I will not be laughed at! I had everything right and I was almost completing a groundbreaking theory, but the other professors just mocked me! It must be Mr. Pokémon, spreading lies and propaganda about me. I'm writing a speech, but I can't really know where to start from. Plus, I had to give all my regular work to my only assistant."

"Gee, I wish I could help, but I'm in the middle of something…" Kris said, and actually meant it.

"Doing something for the Legendary Society?" Elm asked.

"Wha… How did you know that?"

"That's about all I know. Professor Oak is working with them and told me that you and your friends were as well. And, to be honest, I was hoping to bump into you… I just forgot about it… Anyway, I don't want to inquire what you do with the Legendary Society-"

"Good, because I'm not telling" Kris said. "Go on."

"Yes, I'm not going to ask what you're doing, but I'm just telling you to keep on your guard. The Legendary Society has a lot of influence all over the world, but at the same time, they don't always act on the boundaries of the law, and any of them could potentially abuse their status. There's just something wrong about them…"

"Yeah, that's a nice story, professor" Kris said, not really buying into Elm's story. "I'll 'think' about it, I swear. Anyway, I need to get to Kanto. Bye!"

Ignoring Elm's warnings, Kris left New Bark Town and started her hike towards Kanto. Kris didn't really have any qualms about ditching Dawn and May to Blackthorn, since she doubted that she would be even missed, as now that Dawn and May started chatting properly, they realized how much common they ha with each other. Kris, on the other hand, was different. She didn't want 'just for fun'-contests, she wanted action, excitement and things like that. She wanted to do good, to be remembered. And if saving the world would not put her on the map, then she would be thoroughly convinced that the world was not worth saving.


	44. The things you learn

**Chapter Forty-four: **_**The things you learn…**_

"Uh, Shane, how long do we need to keep digging?"

"What? You'll dig as long as I keep telling you to do so!"

The location was Pewter City. Pretending to represent an archeological society, Shane had ordered a bunch of Pewter City inhabitants, including Timmy, Brock and the gym trainers to dig around the closed Pewter Museum of Science in order to search for the plates. Seeing as Shane hadn't been very productive in his plate search, this was only necessary. But of course, Shane didn't want to get his hands dirty, so he made all the other Pewter inhabitants search the plates.

"Come on, dig! Dig! You, dig faster. And you, dig slower!" Shane ordered. "Come on, it can't be that hard! You, Tommy!"

"Uh, Shane, it's Timmy, OK? We've known each other for a year now…"

"Yeah, right, Timmy, where's Leaf? She should help us dig or something."

"I don't care where she is" Timmy said, then returned to his digging. "She hasn't been in Pewter for days now. She can make up her own decisions, after all."

"Whatever" Shane said.

"Here's your soda, Shane!"

Shane turned around to see a young and physically small blonde-haired boy wearing a wide straw hat. Previously, Shane had randomly asked someone in the digging team to bring him a soda, but he never imagined that someone would actually do it for him. Grabbing the soda, Shane felt extreme gratitude towards this young man, and wanted to know more about him.

"Wow, thanks, that was just a throw-off, really…" Shane said modestly as he grabbed the drink. "But this should keep me cool. Uh… sure you don't want anything?"

"No, I'm fine" the boy replied, and then fell silent, as if waiting for Shane to continue the discussion.

"Alright, then… what's your name?" Shane asked.

"Amarillo del Bosque Verde" the boy replied, much to Shane's confusion. "And judging by your expression, you probably want the short version. Just call me Yellow."

"Yellow, huh… that's an unusual name. What does your full name mean?"

"'Yellow of Viridian Forest' simply enough" Yellow said. "I don't actually live here. I come from Viridian City, just like you. Yeah, I've seen you couple of times at the Trainer's School. I really admire those who got education. I have basically lived in Viridian Forest for my whole life. I don't even know who my dad is, but he nevertheless knocked up my mom before leaving her in the mess at the forest."

"Fascinating" Shane said as he slurped down his soda, but this time actually meaning it. "I didn't know people lived at the forest."

"Hm. Not any more" Yellow replied bitterly. "They have been really cutting it shorter during the years, but last week, practically the whole forest was cut down and everything on the way of progress was bulldozed. I mean, I don't mind if they build habitats there, but they're not doing anything! And there's wood all around us, this city is practically surrounded by billions of trees!"

Shane listened to Yellow intently. Somehow, this guy talked real business, but not in a condescending or ranting way. When Shane occasionally replied back, he constantly made sure to say the right things and to avoid embarrassing himself. Somehow, Shane was really conscious about himself: he avoid breathing too heavily or flailing his arms around. Establishing direct eye contact with Yellow was hard for Shane as well. But Yellow didn't seem to mind. If anything, Yellow actually seemed to admire Shane for being a 'studied man' and doing 'archeological work', and miraculously, Shane avoided making a fool of himself during the conversation.

"Uh… Shane? Are you all right? Your eyes are wandering…" Yellow said after a ten-minute soliloquy, during which Yellow talked and Shane kept staring at him.

"What? Oh, nothing. Carry on, Yellow, you good-looking… I mean, good-sounding… I mean, guy. I mean… I don't mean to offend, but you are physically quite small, and your voice is kinda… high for someone of your age. But thanks for the soda, again. Although I would sure like a beer right about now."

"Hey, I can't buy beer, I'm only 17!" Yellow said. "And I wouldn't know about any of that what you said. You know, I, uh… I like manly, guy stuff. Like women!"

"Uh, of course, me too!" Shane announced. "Not even Clint Eastwood or Tommy Lee Jones could match my charisma and overall manliness."

Yellow laughed, letting out a nervous giggle before quickly shutting himself up.

"Anyway…" Yellow said and seemed like he was blushing a bit. "I should keep digging now."

"Uh… you do that."

This fascinating young man then left to continue his digging, and unlike the other workers, he was quite excited to do so, something that Shane really appreciated. Somehow, Shane even felt like he could be infatuated towards this young lad, but he nevertheless tried to get thoughts like that out of his head and only convinced himself that it was just Yellow's empathy and overall niceness that made Shane more interested in him than other people. As Shane continued to drink his soda while the parched workers were elbow-deep in dirt in front of him, a man working at the Pokémon Center walked up to him, waving a piece of paper in his hand.

"Telegram!"

"Oh, that's funny, I didn't know anyone sent telegrams anymore…" Shane pondered as he grabbed the piece of paper from the delivery boy. "Hmm, I see… There's a package for me at the Pokémon Center and someone's there to meet me. It doesn't say who it is, but meeting random strangers shouldn't do any harm. OK guys, I'll be gone for a while, and when I come back, I want to see more plates and less whining!"

Leaving the Pewter inhabitants digging helplessly, Shane walked to the nearest Pokémon Center, whistling along the way. Even though the deadline was constantly approaching, Shane wasn't very worried, as he knew that the others would nevertheless find the plates and do all the work for him. As he entered the Pokémon Center, a big package was already there for him at the door, along with a disgruntled FedEx employee who needed Shane to sign the package. After the signing was over, Shane grabbed the package and opened it.

Inside, there were plates, the same kind he was looking for, eight in total. The Insect Plate, the Fist Plate, Sky Plate, the Icicle Plate, the Dread Plate, the Stone Plate, the Iron Plate and the Flame Plate. Shane had no idea why someone wanted to send them to him, but the package also included a note, that should explain things ever so conveniently:

"_Dear Shane,_

_Here are the eight plates we have been able to found across the regions. Along with the rest of the group, we have decided to send them all to you. While the others objected, I figured you were the optimal person to keep the plates, considering no one would believe you were carrying anything valuable. No offense. Besides, you are carrying five plates with you anyway. Yes, we know everything. Just a heads up. Oh, and we have also sent someone to join you, because your next assignment is to head to the Kanto Victory Road and search it from top to bottom._

Signed, Cynthia.

_P.S. Don't even think about stealing the plates and using them for various nefarious purposes, because we would be forced to kill you if you would. Hope this doesn't upset you or anything."_

Throwing the note to the nearest trash can (and missing), Shane grabbed all the plates and crammed them into his surprisingly roomy bag. Considering that the note contained no additional information; Shane was forced to wait in the Pokémon Center until his supposed partner would arrive. While waiting, he saw about a hundred different trainers heading to the nurse and giving them their injured Pokémon, all panicked and inexperienced and thinking that their Pokémon fainting would be the end of the world.

Finally, after hours of waiting, the person who Shane needed to team up with showed up. Unfortunately, it was not someone Shane _wanted_ to be with, quite the opposite. It was Kris. She did not seem to mind being teamed up with Shane, as happily waved at Shane before squeezing past the traffic to walk up to him. Shane, however, was not all that happy to see Kris, and instead of acting maturely, he looked to the other direction with his arms crossed.

"Whew, that was one long walk…" Kris panted as she dragged her bags to Shane. "So, you have been keeping busy, I hope?"

"Uh, in case you haven't noticed, I'm not speaking to you" Shane said. "No, wait a minute…"

"Forget it, Shane, I thought you had already learned to bury that stupid feud!" Kris said. "Look, I'm not too happy about this either. But can't we at least try to get along?"

Shane replied by mumbling something incoherent, and Kris took that as a 'yes'. Their next destination was Victory Road, which would involve lots and lots of walking, from Pewter to Viridian City through the Viridian Forest, then to the route leading to northwest where Victory Road was. As Shane and Kris passed through Viridian Forest, Shane finally started talking:

"OK, Kris, we can talk now. Let's just say that we were both stupid here."

"What? You were the one who acted like a jerk" Kris reminded. "I was just trying to be the bigger person. But if you want to apologize…"

"No, it's not my style" Shane lamented. "But, uh, we can talk now. You see, there's something I've been needing to get off my chest for the past twenty minutes now."

"What has troubled you for that long?" Kris asked.

"Mock me if you want, but that twenty minutes could have easily been… twenty-_one_ minutes, for all I know. I met this guy, a kid, really, back in Pewter. Oh, crap, that reminds me… I should have told them to stop digging… they're still looking for the plates… Oh, well, anyway, this kid who was really nice. He listened to me, I listened to him. He was interesting, and unlike anyone else I have met so far, he was genuinely nice. Uh, present company excluded, of course."

"Good save" Kris said. "And?"

"Well… keep this to yourself, and I'll gut you if you tell it to anyone else, but… I think I actually felt _something _towards him. You know, nothing dirty or anything, but something… deep.."

"Aww, our little Shane had a chance for some guy-on-guy action and he passed it down, for shame!" Kris mocked.

"Shut up!" Shane shouted. "I swear to God-"

"Relax, your secret is safe with me, cross my heart or however it went" Kris said, smiling devilishly. "I still can't believe that story, though. I always thought that you were too much of a coward to admit feeling anything like that."

"Me too" Shane said obliviously. "But now that I got that off my chest, maybe we should steer into other, less embarrassing subjects. Say, how has your period been lately? What?"

Despite stupid conversations by these two, Shane and Kris nevertheless continued walking towards Victory Road, happily chatting along the way. They discussed about everything that happened to the others during their escapades: how Silver found his father, how May and Dawn learned to co-operate and to realize their resemblances, how Lucas and Pearl strengthened their bond and became best friends again, and finally, how Brendan managed to establish a healthy relationship to his father. And yet, even though all kinds of things happened to the others, Shane and Kris were basically just as same as before. They hadn't encountered any changes, or anything that would make them better people. Or, at least, so they thought.

After getting Kris to stop teasing him about his secret man-lover, Shane also admitted that he had a different motive to climb to Victory Road, despite only having been assigned there a while ago. According to his book, '_Legendary Pokémon and their Surprisingly Accurate Whereabouts_', the legendary Pokémon Moltres visited Victory Road and hibernated there for a week every summer. It was somehow sealed in a chamber somewhere inside the tunnels of Victory Road, but neither Shane or Kris had any idea where.

The Victory Road was the same as ever. Rocks that needed to be moved on buttons to open doors, endless hordes of randomly appearing hostile Pokémon and trainers that didn't seem to mind spending the rest of their lives inside a dark, damp cave. As Shane and Kris walked past the trainers and deeper into the tunnels, they finally arrived to a secluded area, without trainers or even wild Pokémon. Simply enough, the tunnel was a dead end. At the very end of the tunnel, there were a few switches that seemed to predict a tedious puzzle, as well as an elaborate painting of Moltres on the back wall of the dead end.

"I know these situations. It's obvious that we're going to have to solve some kind of switch-related puzzle in order to get to Moltres' chamber…" Kris said.

"Really?" Shane said. "I thought we just needed to blow up that wall painting to get through…"

"For once, let's use brains instead of brawn… not that you have either of them, anyway" Kris said. "Now, I'll turn that switch over there and open the chamber while you-"

"Don't even think about it, Kris!" Shane interrupted. "I want to see Moltres first, and _I'm_ the one who gets to walk into that chamber first! So _I'll _turn the switch!"

"Whatever…" Kris sighed. "It's all yours."

Rolling up his sleeves, Shane got to work, starting to pull an extremely heavy and most likely centuries old stone switch. At first, he didn't get it to move even an inch, but slowly, the back wall of the tunnel started rising, revealing the entrance to Moltres' chamber.

"That's it… keep pulling!" Kris said, while Shane grunted some kind of reply as he pulled the switch with every ounce of strength he had. "Hang on!" Kris continued. "You can't go into that chamber first if you need to pull the switch!"

"Good thinking!" Shane grunted, then looked around him to find something to keep the switch in position. "Ah! Just what I needed. This pink stone tablet will do nicely…"

Shane positioned the pink plate between the switch and the floor, and the entrance remained open, but just barely. Furthermore, the plate was starting to crumble as it kept the heavy switch in place.

"Wait, Shane!" Kris yelled. "That's a plate! You can't do that, it'll be useless if it's broken!"

Shane tried to object, but Kris had already rushed to the switch and grabbed the plate away to salvage it. And just as Kris removed the plate, the wall crushed down again, once again sealing the entrance.

"Hey! I needed to go there!" Shane complained.

"What's more important, saving the world or you getting a picture of some bird?" Kris reasoned.

Shane decided to act like his feelings were hurt and didn't reply, but in reality, he did know that Kris was right. Deep down. For now, Shane had to settle for his fate and abandon the idea of seeing Moltres. Kris proceeded to read the writing on the plate:

"It's quite hard to tell, but I think it says the following… '_The rightful bearer of a Plate draws from the Plate it holds_'. How cryptic."

"I guess so… which plate is that?" Shane asked.

"The Mind Plate, I think. Wait, do you know that this means? There's only three plates left!"

"Great, and we still have six days left before the deadline!" Shane said. "This has been remarkably easy… say, Kris? Can I ask you something?"

"Sure, anything."

"Well, I have been needing to ask this for a long time already, but I haven't had the chance. And it hasn't been easy to put it into words, but-"

Shane's thoughtful words were interrupted, as Led Zeppelin's 'Stairway to Heaven' started playing out of nowhere. Kris looked around her, then realized that it was her cell phone ringing. She apologized to Shane quickly, then answered:

"Kris here!"

"_Kris, it's Morty_" said the caller. "_I'm at the Cerulean Cape, the road north from Cerulean City. I need you to come here, for help. We're waiting for you at Bill's house. Later_!"

"Well, that was Morty" Kris said after hanging up and cramming the cell phone back in her pocket. "He asked me to help him. He sounded quite anxious. Listen, I'm sorry, but I'll talk to you later. Bye!"

Giving Shane nothing more than a hand wave, Kris left Victory Road in order to catch the next bus to Cerulean City. Shane was just left standing alone in the cave, staring at the spot where Kris was just standing a moment ago. For a few minutes, he just stood there, until he got a call as well, his ever-catchy ringtone being some horrible Barry Manilow song.

"You've reached Shane Corporations, how can I help you?" Shane said as he answered.

"_Hi Shane, long time to no hear, darling_" an annoying, stretchy man voice said. "_Like, it's me, Wallace. Listen, there's a major sitch going on here at the Seafoam Island. I've asked all over, but I can't reach anyone, so if you'd come and help me and Steven, then that would be fab. Laterz!_"

Barely understanding what Wallace was saying, Shane deduced that head to head for the Seafoam Islands. So, forgetting why he was even bummed out in the first placed, he cheerfully started walking to get to Fuchsia.

Kris' bus ride to Cerulean City lasted for almost two hours. Along the way, she had time to think. She was quite bothered about Shane, not exactly knowing that he had to say to her. All kinds of thoughts were filling her head, like her dream of one day becoming a champion of some Pokémon League. For now, she had abandoned that, considering that her success in three league tournaments so far had been poor, at least to her.

As soon as she arrived to Cerulean, Kris tried to forget about the things troubling her and headed straight to the Cerulean Cape, searching for Bill's house. Coincidentally enough, it wasn't too hard to find, as it was the only house at the cape. The house was not large, but the place was essentially gorgeous, as it had a beautiful view of the ocean. Especially now as it was noon and a beautiful summer day, the sunlight sparkling off the bay looked divine, even.

Of course, Kris wasn't the person who much had time to stare at something like an ocean, so she walked into Bill's house instead. The interior of Bill's place was like the polar opposite of the exterior, as it was cold, gray and messy, with strange contraptions and papers filling the floor and desks. Noticeably, there was also just one, large room, with Bill's patented transferring device and a PC at one corner. Inside, Kris saw Bill, along with Morty and Eusine, who looked more manic than ever. Eusine was currently having a heated argument with Bill as Morty calmly looked on. When Morty noticed Kris coming, he signaled her to talk elsewhere.

"Thanks for coming, Kris" Morty said after making sure he was not in earshot. "Eusine returned from Sinnoh yesterday. And there's something wrong with him…"

"Of course there's something wrong with him, he's Eusine" Kris remarked.

"Yeah, but he's even worse than usual these days…" Morty muttered as he briefly glanced at Eusine, who was throwing objects at Bill. "He told me something weird. He claimed that he saw Shaymin in Sinnoh, and then he told me that he almost drowned. The latter part is true, there was a Goldeen stuck in his throat when we arrived, but I have a feeling that he could have possibly hallucinated the part about Shaymin while almost drowning. Anyway, Eusine considers it to be some sort of sign, and trusts that Suicune is ready for him somewhere."

"Uh, what's the logic in that?" Kris wondered. "No, wait, scratch that, it's Eusine we're talking about here. He doesn't _need_ logic."

"What are you talking about over there?" Eusine shouted when Bill ducked behind a computer. "Oh, hi, Kris! You weren't talking about me, weren't you?"

"No, I was just telling the situation to her" Morty said, then explained the thing to Kris: "You see, Eusine and Bill are having some opposing viewpoints here. There have been strange weather phenomena going around here lately, mostly ocean-related. Bill thinks that it's the Splash Plate, it can cause things like that. Eusine, however, seems to think that it's a water-type legendary Pokémon, which would be…"

"…Suicune, of course" Kris guessed. "What do you think, then?"

"Well, there's no point in guessing what it is. We need to go see it ourselves. Problem is, it can be dangerous when we don't know what it is. Simply put, you're our backup, Kris. Bill, you said you had a boat ready?"

"Yeah, there's a rowboat at the pier" said Bill, the skinny, brown-haired computer geek and Legendary Society-member. "But, uh, I don't think it can hold that much weight, so now that Kris is here, you three can go. I'll… monitor the situation from here!"

"Chicken" Eusine mocked. "All right, let's go."

But despite all the preparations they did, they soon found it unnecessary. As Kris, Morty and Eusine left Bill's house, they immediately saw the causer of the problems. Eusine was actually right, and Bill was wrong: Suicune had arrived, leaving a trail of water behind it and sparkling in the sunlight. Eusine, ecstatic to see Suicune, pushed Kris and Morty out of his way and stood right in front of the glorious Pokémon that was quite wary; it remembered the time when Eusine tried to capture it.

"Suicune, it is me, Eusine, your biggest fan" Eusine said. "I must say, this has been a - HEY! WHERE ARE YOU GOING?"

Suicune didn't pay attention to Eusine as it jumped away, then started running further towards the bay. It stopped briefly, then moved its head as to tell something to the group, possibly signaling them to follow it. Eusine didn't get this, but he ran after Suicune anyway, and Kris and Morty followed suit.

Since the Cerulean Cape was a dead end, the group didn't have to run far to arrive to the beach. There was a lone tree in the midst of all the sand, and Suicune stopped right next to it. Because of its incredible speed, it had to wait for a while for the humans to catch up to it. As they arrived, Suicune patted the ground with its hind legs, as if telling to look under the tree.

Restraining Eusine, Kris and Morty walked up to the tree. Suicune moved out of the way, revealing a small hole near the roots of the tree. A large rock was fitted in the hole, but Kris and Morty could see the rock was pinning something… or someone. Kris, Morty and Eusine dragged the rock away, with Suicune simply watching the situation. Now, the group could see into the hole clearly - but Kris wished that she wouldn't have. There was a dead body in the hole, but obviously not a fresh one, as it was already decomposing and full of worms. But the corpse was seen grasping to something that Morty saw important.

"Pardon me, slim" Morty said and grabbed the thing that the corpse was holding on, accidentally detaching the dead body's arm as well. "Whoops. Anyway, what do we have here… He obviously wanted to clench on to this with his life… ah! A tape recorder!"

"Cool, they always solve mysteries in stories such as this" Kris said. "Let's hear it out."

Morty pushed the 'play'-button and everyone, even Suicune, listened intently. At first, there was nothing. Then, the group could hear footsteps, gradually becoming more audible, and most importantly, faster. Before they knew it, the man making the recording was obviously running, since he kept huffing and puffing and mumbling something incoherent to the recorder. Finally, the running stopped, and the group could hear dialogue:

"_Please… Please, master, I beg of you…_"

"_Do not think for a moment that your pathetic pleading could make me feel sorry for you. Face it: you don't have any excuses. You sold me out to them, didn't you?_"

"_No, you have to believe me… I worked with those researchers… But I didn't tell them about you, I swear!_"

"_Tough break, but I need to do this quickly. Do not think that I'm being unfair, though. You'll get the same treatment as those other researches back at Route 224._"

"_Master Cyrus? Wuh-what did you do to them?_"

"_That should be obvious, yes. No, don't feel overjoyed. I made sure that I cannot be traced. People on this planet are almost too easy to fool. Goodbye_."

"_No… No… N-_ TSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSH"

Next, the group could only hear static, and after a few seconds, the recording stopped. For a moment, no one seemed to know what the hell was going on. Then, Kris understood the whole thing.

"Of course…" she said. "Our gross friend with the tape recorder has probably answered this mystery. If you really weren't listening, I'll refresh your memory. He said 'route 224'. That whole Suicune thing you were talking about… it's innocent! It was Cyrus!"

"You've lost me" Eusine said.

"Good God, Eusine, you are one freaking retard!" Kris yelled. "It's… you have missed the entire point! You have been too focused on trying to catch Suicune that you never even began to wonder _why_ it has appeared to us so many times!"

"Hey, I know why it has appeared, lady!" Eusine said. "Suicune has chosen me!"

"Chosen my ass!" Kris said. "It tried to warn us about the murders Cyrus committed, and yet we didn't realize it until now. We're the idiots here, especially you!"

"I… I.."

SHHK-SHHK!

Eusine tried to say something, but was interrupted by the sound of a gun cocking. Kris and Morty immediately took steps backwards, as they saw a brown-haired girl standing about ten yards away from them, holding a rifle in her hands, pointing it towards Suicune.

"Leaf?"

"Oh, hi, Kris!" Leaf said, unhinged by Kris' presence. "Sorry, no time to chat. I have that _thing_ on my sight."

"Listen, Leaf, I know what happened already, Silver told me" Kris said.

"Oh, well then you know why I need to do this!" Leaf said, constantly keeping her rifle ready and her finger on the trigger. "You, with the stupid outfit, stand back. Not that your presence really bothers me, because the bullets should go _riiight_ through you."

"Listen, Ms. Crazy Lady" Eusine said, thinking that he could calm Leaf down. "Obviously, you need to check into the nearest mental asylum. Then-"

BANG!

Having no patience for Eusine's filibustering, Leaf fired her rifle, and a bullet snapped right in front of Eusine's feet, causing him to jump on the ground in panic. Next, Leaf chambered another bullet and aimed directly towards Suicune, which wasn't moving anywhere. Kris still tried to reason with Leaf, albeit whilst hiding behind a tree:

"Look, Leaf, we have evidence that Suicune did not do it" she said. "It was Cyrus, the man we're trying to stop."

"What kind of evidence do you have, huh?" Leaf shouted. "My life has been ruined because of those murders! Everything has been flushed down the toilet: my research, my work, my friends… even Silver has left me now. I have nothing."

"Well, we have some sort of hazy tape recorder…" Kris said, failing to impress Leaf.

"Don't shoot it you, you maniac!" Eusine screamed, although not willing to get up and protect the Suicune.

Leaf stared at the Suicune through the scope of her rifle, constantly having it in her sight, but hesitating to shoot. Kris' word about evidence and such echoed in her mind. But maybe she could receive closure by pulling the trigger? In the end, she had to make the choice. She dropped the gun, and despite Kris' pleads for her to stay, Leaf simply walked away. Now, Eusine decided to take advantage of this chance.

Smirking victoriously, Eusine approached Suicune, ready to capture it, but Suicune already realized Eusine's intentions. It had served its purpose, and as soon as Eusine opened his mouth, Suicune ran towards the sea, moving at such an incredible speed that the group could only see a flash of a blue lightning.

"It's gone, Eusine" Morty said coldly as Eusine stared at the sea longingly. "For good."

Meanwhile, Shane had arrived to Fuchsia City. Of course, the methods for him to get to Seafoam Islands were harder to come up with. His only water Pokémon was Otto, but he had no idea how to use it for his advantage. Luckily, his day was saved when a friendly sea captain offered to give Shane a ride to the islands. Unfortunately, the captain looked like he regretted picking Shane up, as he just wouldn't keep his mouth shut:

"…so I said to him: 'Oh, yeah, well so are you, dude!'. Of course, I then beat all of them up. Serves them right for being jackasses. Anyway, at that point, I saved the world for the third time, and then the governor's daughter begged me to take her to her house and make sweet love to her. How could I refuse? Then, when I rejected the offer for presidency-"

"Your stories are indeed fascinating, my friend" the captain interrupted. "But can I step in for a moment?"

"Sure, but when you're done, please, allow me to finish my story."

"Naturally…" the captain groaned. "Anyways, you might not be surprised pleasantly when I do this, but you have no other choice, considering we are in the middle of the open sea. You see, I am not a captain at all. I am-"

The 'captain' tore off his disguise, a captain's jacket and a cap, revealing that underneath, he wore a classic Team Rocket uniform with elements of a burglar's outfit. Naturally, his most striking feature was his enormous moustache.

"-Fernando!"

"You sure took sweet time finishing that sentence."

"What, you're not surprised. Not even a bit?" Fernando asked. "Gee, I went through the trouble of equipping this ship, disguising myself and fooling you…"

"To be honest, you had me fooled, so don't worry, your disguise was good" Shane comforted.

"Much obliged" Fernando stated. "Now then, prepare to, shall I say 'fork over', the plates you are carrying. Yes, don't play dumb. I have been following you _all_ the time. I know everything that you have done over the last few weeks."

"What, you also mean…?"

"Yes, especially about that. You need to stop that, you might go blind" Fernando quipped. "Give me the plates, so I can sell them to a museum and live the rest of my life in Hawaii, marry an equally rich woman and raise kids who shall become presidents of the United States!"

"We live in the U.S.? Are you sure?"

"I said give them to me, smart guy!" Fernando gnarled. "Don't make me use excessive force. Oh, what am I saying? Excessive force is the best way to handle a situation. Victreebel, go!"

Fernando unleashed his Pokémon, the shrieking Victreebel that looked like a freakishly big carnivorous plant. Shane retorted by sending out his own Pokémon - Shrew.

"That's your best shot?" Fernando sneered. "You're going to defend yourself using an armadillo?"

"Watch it, Fern!" Shane said and picked Shrew up, holding it in front of Fernando's face. "Shrew can be really nasty when it wants to!"

"We'll see… Victreebel, do the scariest face you can!"

Because Victreebel did not have a 'face' in the traditional way, it basically just stood still and looked just the same as usual. This alone was enough to scare Shrew off its wits, forcing it to hide behind Shane's leg again.

"For crying out loud…" Shane moaned. "Oh, I get it. Shrew, use Dig!"

Shrew didn't even seem to understand, but nevertheless burrowed a hole to the deck of the ship, clawing its path all the way to the bottom of the ship, where it struck a great hole in the bottom, causing the ship to get flooded.

"Oh, you idiot! We're sinking! Alas, and I never got to taste caviar" Fernando lamented.

"You're not missing out on anything, it tastes like crap" Shane said. "Shrew, return! Shrew? Oh, come on! It's just water! It's not like it can hurt you, so - OH NO, I'M DROWNING! GET THIS STRANGE CLEAR LIQUID OFF ME! BLBLB…"

...

All was not lost, however. As the ship sunk, Shane lost consciousness, and him and Fernando drifted away. About an hour later, Shane woke up, and as soon as he opened his eyes, he was shocked to see a long, yellow thing looking at him.

"Ahh! A sea serpent!"

"Relax, you silly billy, it's just my Milotic."

As Shane got up, he realized that he was at Cinnabar Island. Or rather, what was left of it, anyway. Pallet Town was in the north and the Seafoam Islands were to the east, but Cinnabar itself was nothing but a pile of rocks, dirt and other junk. Standing next to Shane was Wallace, who had apparently rescued Shane, and now gave Shane a hand getting up. Instead of thanking Wallace, Shane merely asked a question that was bothering him for a while:

"Say, Wallace, why are you suddenly talking like a… well, you know, a very feminine man?"

"I don't know what you're talking about, so please, shut the hell up!" Wallace warned in a surprisingly low voice before beginning his usual, flamboyant chatter again: "Anyhoo… gosh, I was really lucky to find you and your Sandshrew drifting near the islands. Don't worry, that sitch I called about you was solved like ages ago. Whew, that's something off my chest. Anyway, we found the Splash Plate. We are only two plates short from our goal. Fabulous, isn't it, Rodney?"

"No, I'm Shane."

"Oh, I always get those two names mixed up, silly me" Wallace said. "Anyway, there's someone I'd like you to meet. Actually, we're waiting for someone, but before that, I thought you wanted to talk with someone who's been totally helping us out. See that old man arguing with Steven over there?"

Shane looked around him, as almost drowning did hamper one's perception, but eventually he saw the silver-haired Steven talking to an old, bald man in a lab coat, although by 'talking', one could also mean 'arguing, shouting and flailing hands around a lot'.

"Blaine?"

"Oh, you know him?" Wallace asked. "Super! Let's go mingle with them, then. Hey, Steven. Look I found drifting around in the water. It's Maurizio!"

"Shane."

"Right, right, Shane…"

"Do my eyes deceive me?" Blaine said dramatically and took off his sunglasses. "Shane Stephens! We haven't seen each other in a long, long time. Come on, give and old man a hug!"

"All right, if you're using deodorant…" Shane said and leaned closer to Blaine in order to give him a curt, manly hug. "…and apparently you're still not using any. Oh well."

"Why are you here at Cinnabar anyway, with these _people_…?" Blaine asked.

"Oh, Shane's just helping us with some little snag, no biggie" Wallace explained.

"I see…. May I talk to you somewhere more private?" Blaine asked, and not bothering to wait for an answer, dragged Shane away from Steven and Wallace. "What the hell are you doing, son?" Blaine whispered after Steven and Wallace started talking with each other. "You're not working with these Legendary Society guys?"

"Not just working with them…" Shane said, and did a dramatic pause to take out his trainee badge and flash it to Blaine. "…but working _for_ them!"

"Oh, Jesus, Mary and Josef!" Blaine groaned. "I warned you not to trust anyone. Didn't I teach you that? Because I think I did, fool. You have put an old man to shame, Shane. Hey, that rhymes! Anyway, there's something shady about these guys. My advice is: get out of this organization as soon as you can. Seriously."

"Whatever, weirdo" Shane said. "Look, man, I'm this close to becoming accepted to the Legendary Society as a full-time member. Don't blow it!"

Blaine looked disappointed when Shane ignored his warnings, so he walked away as Shane returned to Wallace and Steven. Shane did not feel good about arguing with Blaine, but there was no way Shane would ever pass a chance to join the LS. And that chance would probably become sooner than he thought…

"Say, what are you guys doing here, then?" Shane asked.

"Me and Wallace?" Steven asked. "Waiting for some 'backup', so to say. You might know him, actually. It's our glorious leader, Elder Gent. He's arriving here in a few minutes, on his helicopter."

"That creepy old man has his own _helicopter_?" Shane asked in disbelief. "Seriously, I know you guys all respect, worship and probably love him, but to me, Gent seems like a pretentious egomaniac, and I base my opinion on the _two_ separate occasions during which I met him."

"Ssh, he's coming!" Wallace hushed.

Indeed, Elder Gent, the leader of the Legendary Pokémon Society, had his very own helicopter, a black one, piloted by Cynthia. Cynthia and Gent were also the only ones the helicopter, and Shane desperately tried to get a good look at Gent when the chopper landed, having forgotten what he looked like. Quite frankly, Gent looked like another run-of-the-mill old man with thick glasses, a bushy beard, lots of wrinkles and his standard robe. Steven and Wallace gave their normal greetings to Elder Gent when he arrived, but Shane stormed right in front of the old man.

"Listen, Mr. Gent" Shane said quickly. "I know you probably don't even remember me anymore, but my name is Shane. I tried to get into your fabulous organization _twice_ during my visit in Johto. At both times, my membership was not accepted. What's the deal, man? And by that I mean 'can I join your cool club'? Please?"

"You show a lot of determination, Shane" Gent praised. "Now get ready for he answer. And here it comes. The answer is: 'no'. And by 'no', I mean, you can't join the Legendary Society. Not ever. You have failed to impress me on every possible area. Besides, it's not like my underlings don't report me."

"Damn it!" Shane swore. "You know, that does it. You're one freaking hypocrite, Elder Gent. What credentials do _you _have? What do you even do? I barely ever see you around? What have you been up to while we have been here, risking our beautiful asses when trying to save the world, god damn it! If you really think you're that good, prove it. I challenge you to a battle!"

Even Cynthia, Steven and Wallace did not expect this. After all, Gent was a respected, world-weary guru while Shane was just a young fool. But Gent looked quite amused when he replied:

"Very well, then. A Pokémon battle it shall be. Just you and me. Let's go! And this time, we're not skipping it and cutting straight to the results. We're showing the whole thing!"


	45. The Final Battle

**Chapter Forty-five: **_**The Final Battle**_

The location was Pallet Town. A group of people had gathered in the middle of town, all in one circle. In the middle of the circle, Elder Gent was waiting for his opponent, Shane. Despite knowing that he was already running late, Shane was currently prepping his Pokémon at Professor Oak's lab. He asked Ferguson to send him a selection of Shane's finest Pokémon. Besides Shrew, Otto and Droid, Shane would also use his Crobat called 'Zuba', his Heracross called 'Fredrik' and his Marshtomp called 'Meme'.

"All right, gang, this is it!" Shane said. "In a moment, we will be engaging in a battle we will never forget. I am little rusty, as I haven't been in a battle since… well, since me and Kris battled Jupiter and Mars at Viridian Forest. Wow, it seems like that was an eternity ago. But hey, our opponent is probably a bit rusty as well. Hell, I think his last battle was probably before I was even born! Hah, I'll beat that guy for sure. Anyway, I'm rambling again. The point is: do your best. I know you can deal with whatever Gent throws your way. Come on!"

Shane and his Pokémon cheered in unison, and just then, Blaine stormed into the lab, demanding to see what the holdup was.

"Shane, come on, everyone's waiting!" Blaine said.

"OK, I'll… wait a sec. '_Everyone_'?" Shane asked. "What _everyone_? It's just you, Wallace, Steven and Cynthia, right?"

"Uh… no. There's a whole group of people outside, ready to watch your battle" Blaine said. "But no pressure, kid. I know you can beat that guy. And that'll show him!"

"Uh… sure. Yeah. I can beat him… I think."

Escorted by Blaine, Shane nervously walked towards the circle where the battle would commence. Shane started sweating even more profusely when he realized how many people were watching him. Just about everyone were there: Cynthia, Wallace, Steven, Morty, Eusine, the three monks of the Wise Trio, Bill, Celio, Professor Oak, Professor Oak's grandson Blue, Blue's older sister Daisy, Red's mom, Lucas, Pearl, Dawn, May, Brendan, Timmy and most importantly Kris. Lance was also there, acting as a referee and somewhat of an announcer.

"All right, this it!" Lance announced as Shane had entered the ring and shaken hands with Gent. "I want a nice, clean match here. That goes for especially you, Shane. And Blaine, don't even think about giving steroids to Shane's Pokémon."

"What? You think I would cheat just to see your precious leader losing just to prove my point? I'm apalled!" Blaine said.

"Now, there are some rules that Mr. Gent chose before this battle. He gets to choose the terrain and manner used while fighting. Besides that, we have normal battle rules, but the amount of Pokémon is unlimited" Lance said. "Shane has chosen the coward's way, and he's using six Pokémon, while the legendary warrior Gent is only using three."

"Isn't he a little too biased to be a referee?" Kris mumbled to Cynthia whilst spectating the battle.

"Lance is just hoping Gent to win" Cynthia whispered. "Besides, he was the most neutral guy we could find. Everyone else is rooting for Gent too, except for Blaine. In fact, I have fifty whatevers in this."

"All right, contestants… begin!"

"The first round shall be a normal battle on dry land" Gent said. "Tyranitar, go!"

"Droid, go!"

Without thinking for a proper Pokémon to use against Gent's, Shane went with his Droid, immediately pulling out his strongest Pokémon. Droid was up against Gent's Tyranitar, a very large, green, reptilian-looking Pokémon with a spiky, rock tail and very sharp claws. Seeing as it was a Pokémon Shane had never seen before, he decided to scan it in order to stall the battle for a bit.

"_Tyranitar, the Armor Pokémon and the fully evolved form of Larvitar. It is one of the five Pokémon collectively known as 'pseudo-legendaries' due to their immense strength_" Shane said. "_It is extremely strong and its body can withstand almost all kinds of attacks_. Ooh, doesn't sound good."

"Tyranitar, Earthquake!"

"Droid, Magnet Rise!"

Shane's Magnezone was faster than the Tyranitar, and while Tyranitar stomping the ground caused an immense quake, Droid merely floated higher to avoid the attack.

"Now, Tyranitar, Stone Edge!"

Using its own body as a weapon and charging towards Droid, Tyranitar was able to harm Droid with its sharp spikes, but thanks to Droid's good defenses, this failed to knock Droid out.

"Droid, Zap Cannon!" Shane yelled.

Shane knew that he was taking chances, considering Zap Cannon's inaccuracy, but it was worth it. When the massive blast of electricity flew towards Tyranitar, the large Pokémon was unable to dodge and was paralyzed by the Zap Cannon.

"Now, Droid, Flash Cannon!"

Creating a silver ball of energy, Droid blasted It towards Tyranitar and did massive damage, considering the type effectiveness. With just that single attack, Tyranitar was knocked out cold. Shane rejoiced and recalled his Droid after thanking it for the battle.

"And the winner of the first round is… Shane" Lance said, announcing rather unenthusiastically.

"Wow! Go Shane!" Kris shouted and applauded, being the only one besides Blaine and Timmy to do so. "I can't believe it! Whenever I have seen him battle, he's always clumsy and poorly coordinated. I wonder what his secret is?"

"We'll see how this turn out" Cynthia commented. "That was just the first round."

"For the next round, we shall be battling aerially" Gent said after recalling his Tyranitar, acting like he hadn't lost the first round at all. "I suppose you have a flying Pokémon capable of carrying you?"

"Well duh!" Shane said. "For this, I choose Zuba!"

"Hm, I see…" Gent said snidely, having a quite condescending look on his face as he watched Shane's Crobat. "Well I choose… Salamence!"

Shane and Gent got on their respective Pokémon, and while Shane's Crobat looked small, it could easily carry Shane. Gent's Pokémon was Salamence, a ferocious-looking blue dragon-type, which was, according to the PokéDex, also a 'pseudo-legendary' Pokémon. The spectators watched as Gent and Shane rose higher, flying slightly above the houses of Pallet Town. Shane was not the kind of guy who liked heights, but for now, he wanted to defeat Gent more than anything.

"OK, Zuba, Hyper Beam that ugly lizard!"

Zuba launched its attack, but this time Gent reacted fast:

"Salamence, Double Team!"

Using an attack that Shane hated more than anything, Salamence created duplicates of itself and circled Zuba, who was unable to tell the real Salamence from the others.

"No worries, I was crazy prepared for this one… Zuba, blast that entire circle of duplicates with Hyper Beam!"

Even though Shane was not smart enough to whisper his commands instead of yelling them out loud, the attack was nevertheless successful. Zuba used Hyper Bam, this time cutting through the circle of Salamence duplicates, eventually hitting the real thing. Salamence was hurt, but far from out.

"Salamence, Dragon Rage!"

Gent's Salamence hurled a big ball of fire towards Zuba, but it was fast enough to dodge, and Shane was able to retort:

"Zuba, Cross Poison!"

Zuba understood, and Shane had to hold on as well as he could when Zuba rushed towards Salamence. Zuba crossed its wings and slashed Salamence mid-air in an 'X' formation, leaving a purple after image in Salamence's body. It wasn't the attack that hurt the most, but the poisoning effect, which caused Salamence to faint and crash to the ground. Just before Salamence hit the ground, Gent jumped off, and regretfully recalled his Pokémon whilst Shane landed and announced his triumph to everyone. Kris, Timmy and Blaine clapped even harder, and even Cynthia clapped her hands softly to make sure that Lance didn't hear.

"Well, Shane wins the second round too, I guess…" Lance 'announced'.

"Yes! Eat it, Gent! I'm better than you, and when we think about it logically, maybe _I_ should be the leader of the Legendary Society!"

"Oh, God, no!" Lance groaned.

"Settle down, my young, foolish friend, we still have one round to go" Gent said. "For now, everything goes. Not only that, but the winner of this round wins the entire match, just because I make the rules. I hope your Zuba is prepared for this, though…"

"He's prepared for everything, so I'm keeping him on the arena" Shane said. "Show me what you've got."

"Well, this next Pokémon is really a shocker, if you don't mind the pun. And it will literally fry your mind. Give a hot, sizzling welcome to… Zapdos!"

Even the softest speech in the audience ceased when Gent unleashed his next Pokémon. Shane slowly grabbed his camera and stared when Gent's Poké Ball opened, revealing the magnificent big yellow bird in all its glory. Its spiky feathers in its wings, tail and head stuck out in many directions, which caused the whole Pokémon looked like a bolt of lightning. Its most striking feature was its long, thin and extremely sharp beak which looked like it could impale a human being.

"Well, are we battling or what?" Gent asked, and Shane could only wonder how Gent got around capturing Zapdos. "If you want to give up…"

"What? Never!" Shane said and pretended to be brave. "Zuba, Poison Fang!"

But Shane's Crobat didn't even get near to Zapdos, as it used its Discharge attack, charging out powerful electric sparks in all directions, knocking Zuba out instantly. Shane recalled Zuba, then decided to use Droid, while knowing that it was exhausted from the battle against Tyranitar. Indeed, while Droid was resistant, Zapdos could easily wear it down with its electric attacks, then used Ancientpower to finish Droid off. Shane was losing quite easily and hadn't even damaged Zapdos at all yet.

"Damn it…"

"Hey, you may feel free to use more than one Pokémon at a time, if you're scared that you might lose…" Gent taunted.

"Hell yeah I'm scared!" Shane whined. "Meme, Fredrik, wipe the floor with that Zapdos!"

Shane decided to use his Marshtomp and his Heracross both at the same time, deciding to outmaneuver Zapdos by hitting from both directions.

"OK, Fredrik, fly behind the Zapdos and use Megahorn!" Shane said. "You, Meme, stay on the ground and use Ice Beam, you should not be affected by those electric attacks. Go!"

Fredrik and Meme did as ordered, and Meme found a good spot to launch its attack from, while Fredrik flew closer to Zapdos. Fredrik's horn started glowing and it launched itself towards Zapdos at terminal velocity while Meme, making sure to hit Zapdos with one blow, used Ice Beam. But Gent was clever, and he merely had to give Zapdos a signal with his hands. Zapdos lured Fredrik and Meme close to each other, then swiftly dodged the Ice Beam, causing it to hit Fredrik instead, knocking it out. Then, Zapdos increased its speed and started glowing, before discharging its own body straight towards Meme, using the powerful Sky Attack. Both Fredrik and Meme were knocked out instantly, and Shane had no choice but to recall them.

"Hah! _Now_ will you give up? Of course, this is very entertaining… you may continue if you want…"

"But I don't…" Shane stuttered. "I mean, I… Uh…"

Shane didn't know what to do. He was so sure that he would defeat Gent, and now he was already losing. He only had Shrew and Otto left, but he knew that both of them were too small to fight a legendary Pokémon which had single-handedly defeated four of Shane's Pokémon without suffering a scratch itself. But somehow, Shrew seemed to know what was happening. It broke out from its Poké Ball, appearing in front of Shane and looking like it was willing to fight.

"Really, Shrew?" Shane asked and raised his eyebrows a little. "You know what you're facing, right?"

Shrew nodded, and for the first time, didn't seem like it was afraid to attack. Instead, it was quite eager to battle a legendary.

"Well… if you're sure. Then so be it. Hey, we have a chance, right Shrew? Hey, why bother talking to you, you can't reply. Give 'em hell, Shrew!"

Shrew nodded happily, then charged into combat. The Zapdos didn't look happy seeing its new opponent, and Gent was quite surprised at Shane's decision.

"So you already know you're losing, but you're willing to fight to the end?" Gent asked. "Fine by me. As an act of good will, I'll let you start!"

"I'll show you good will, you old bastard…" Shane muttered. "I mean, _thanks_. OK, Shrew, charge! Use Defense Curl, then Rollout!"

Shrew curled up into a ball and its body flashed and hardened to be ready to strike. It started rolling towards Zapdos at high speed, and when it was close enough, Shrew jumped into the air whilst still rolling, actually managing to hit Zapdos quite hard, its attack being super-effective. Gent was visibly surprised at this, and ordered Zapdos to use Ancientpower, but as Shrew just kept rolling, the attack missed. Shrew managed to hit Zapdos again, and two more times after that, but began to be visibly exhausted, while Zapdos was still ready to fight. When Shrew attempted Rollout for the fifth time, Zapdos managed to dodge, then used Ancientpower, which knocked the exhausted Shrew to the ground. Shane tried to yell at Shrew, to make it get up, but it was too tired to move.

"Time to wrap up, Zapdos!" Gent ordered. "Drill Peck!"

Zapdos obeyed like it was just a run-of-the-mill Pokémon, and its beak started literally spinning like a drill. Zapdos started plummeting towards Shrew's motionless body, as if to impale it completely, and Shane finally decided to step in.

"OK, OK, I give up! Stop it!"

"Zapdos, cease your attack!" Gent ordered.

Just as Zapdos' sharp beak was approaching Shrew, it ceased its attack, and Gent recalled Zapdos into a decorative, blue ball with a large M printed on it; the Master Ball.

"Uh… the winner is Elder Gent!" Lance announced, and the Legendary Society members applauded and praised their leader.

Shane, on the other hand, was more bummed out than ever. Sadly recalling Shrew into its ball to rest, Shane dragged himself back to the company of Kris, Timmy and Blaine while all the others praised Gent.

"Tough break, man" Timmy said, as if trying to comfort Shane. "But hey, that was quite awesome."

"Listen to the man, Shane!" Kris said. "The first two battles were amazing! So what if you lost against Zapdos? He totally had the unfair advantage. Granted, controlling a Pokémon like that is very, very hard, but still, um… you were good!"

"Somehow, that does not make me feel better…" Shane lamented. "Sorry, Blaine, I let you down."

"Nah, don't sweat it, Shane. Sure, I'm currently fighting against the urge to yell at you, but that would be unfair. It's just… it would have been so great to see Gent finally get his comeuppance! Trust me, there's more to him and these others that meets the eye."

Shane had already stopped listening to Blaine's conspiracy theories, but Kris argued that Blaine could have a hint of truth in his ramblings. Shane returned Zuba, Meme and Fredrik to Ferguson via the PC, then returned to the battle area, where Gent was making a speech of some sort. He demonstrated the glorious Zapdos by letting it out from the Master Ball, then made a speech to his underlings.

"I did not want to capture this Zapdos, and I do not believe that we humans should be messing with legendary Pokémon" Gent said. "But when the Power Plant was restored, Zapdos had to fly away, and it could have potentially attacked people. This just proves how mankind's own idiocy can sometimes cause us trouble. If I hadn't captured Zapdos with this Master Ball, Kanto would be nothing but a pile of ash by now. But, now that Zapdos has served its purpose and I have a good place for it…"

And now, Gent turned to Zapdos and started talking to it:

"All right, you're free to go! Head towards south and stay there!"

To emphasize his words, Gent grabbed another Poké Ball of his and sent out his Tyranitar. While everyone watched, Gent threw the Master Ball in the air, then merely signaled his Tyranitar, which launched a Hyper Beam directly at the ball, blowing it up and causing the pieces to fall into the ocean.

"NO! You idiot, you destroyed the Master Ball!" Shane yelled.

Gent replied only with a cold look. Now that the Zapdos was not contained by a ball anymore, it spread its wings and flew to the south, just like Gent had told it to do. Gent turned to face everyone and explained the situation:

"That was one of the last Master Balls in existence. That was the same prototype ball that Silph Co created years ago. The same one which the Silph Co president gave to Red, a fantastic trainer who used the ball to calm a rampaging Moltres. Red then gave the Master Ball to Blaine, who, according to what I heard, gave it to some chump who got lucky and managed to catch Mewtwo with it-"

"HEY!" Shane objected. "I have a name, you kn-"

"I then confiscated the Master Ball from Blaine after he had sent Mewwo away. This ball is now destroyed" Gent interrupted. "But there were various others. After the experiments, Silph Co sent four other balls to various scientists for research. One was sent to Professor Oak, but he borrowed it to Professor Elm, who couldn't get his own copy. Fatal mistake, because Elm accidentally lost it and it's probably in some trash can in Johto by now. Two were sent to Hoenn, to Professor Birch, who told that he would borrow the other one to Professor Cozmo. But both of them were stolen by a thief called Tabitha, who, as double-crossing as he was, gave Team Aqua and Team Magma each one. We don't have to worry about these balls, as the other one is on the bottom of the ocean and the other one was destroyed by Rayquaza. Then, finally, one was sent to Sinnoh to Professor Rowan. But he managed to decipher the ball's technology in just a few hours and then lent it to the Nintendu Corporation."

"He lent it to those sleazy Nintendu execs?" Shane asked. "Boy, what a moron."

"Psst, watch it!" Cynthia whispered. "Mr. Gent is one of Nintendu's most influential shareholders!"

"Anyway," Gent continued. "The ball accidentally fell into the hands of renegade executive Cyrus, who was secretly the leader of Team Galactic. And that ball was used by him to capture Giratina in the Distortion World, I'm afraid. He can now control all three dragons, and the hour of his insurrection is closer than ever. There are two plates missing, correct?"

"Yes, the Zap Plate and the Draco Plate, sir" Lance said.

"Good. I want you two, Lance and Cynthia, to go find the remaining plates. Until you come back, Wallace is in charge. Wallace, lead the Legendary Society and probably these youngsters to Mt. Coronet. Head for the Spear Pillar. You'll find slots for all these plates there. Use Celio's boat."

"I'm totally on it, Mr. Gent, sir" Wallace said and saluted. "But sir, where will you go?"

"Not important. Just get the job done and summon Arceus, OK?"

"All righty-o!"

Lance and Cynthia got on their flying Pokémon and flew to places unknown to look for the last two plates. And as Gent left Pallet Town abruptly and Blaine angrily returned to his poorly built shack to the partially-destroyed Cinnabar Island, Wallace ordered everyone to gear up and prepare Celio's ship. Besides Wallace, other LS-members Steven, Morty, Eusine, Celio and a previously unnamed wise trio monk called Adrian got on the ship. From the young group, Dawn, May, Lucas, Brendan and Pearl got ready, as did Timmy, who volunteered to come and help out. And since they had all the plates, Shane and Kris had to come too, but they deliberately stalled while loading their stuff into the ship to buy some time.

"So, here we are, heading to parts unknown to fight some genocidal maniac in command of three colossal, reality-bending dragon" Shane recapped. "Nervous?"

"Naturally, but I'm keeping it to myself" Kris said whilst picking up the last crate. "Too bad Silver and Leaf aren't helping us."

"What happened to Leaf?" Shane asked and helped Kris carrying the heavy crate to the ship.

"She might be a little insane in the old membrane" Kris said. "She actually tried to shoot Suicune!"

"Get out of here! Why?"

"I already told you why. Dozens of time before, don't you remember?"

"I have a really short attention sp… hey! Look over there!" Shane suddenly yelled and dropped the crate, almost crushing Kris' toes.

"What?!" Kris asked angrily.

The same straw hat-wearing, blonde-haired guy Shane met in Pewter City approached Kris and Shane slowly. Apparently, he had arrived to Pallet Town in order to witness the battle between Shane and Gent, but arrived a little too late.

"Yellow! Hi!" Shane said. "I'd like you to meet a friend of mine, Kris! Kris, this is the _guy_ I told you about…"

"Nice to, uh… meet you… Yellow?" Kris said as she shook hands with Yellow.

"Likewise!" Yellow chirped. "Say, where are you going? There's a ship ready and everything…"

"Well, it's a secret, but me, Kris and some others have joined forces with the Legendary Pokémon Society in order to save the world from a genocidal maniac by summoning the God of all Pokémon" Shane said. "Trust me, it makes more sense than you'd might think."

"Shane!" Kris yelled. "Ixnay!"

"What?"

"No, it's all right, I had a feeling that something dangerous is happening… It's just the general atmosphere here. I can sense it." Yellow said. "It's both a blessing and a curse I'm afraid. Something to do with the Viridian Forest, I suppose. Well, if you're going to do something dangerous, I… just wanted to come here and warn you. Don't do anything too risky. Come back safe. I know we don't even know, but… I have to go! It was nice meeting you, Kris!"

This confused exchange was over quickly when Yellow turned tail and left Pallet Town quickly. Kris kept looking after Yellow even after he was gone and then glanced at Shane.

"Was that your _boyfriend_, huh, Shane?" she asked.

"It's not like that. _I'm_ not like that. It's just something about him…"

"Shane, I was joking. In case you didn't see it, I'll explain it: don't you think Yellow's voice, hair and body were a little… girly?"

"What are you implying?"

"Well, it's just-"

"Come on already, you two!" Wallace shouted; the ship was about to leave.

Shane and Kris quickly dragged their luggage to the ship, which then left Pallet Town for good. The destination was Mt. Coronet, in Sinnoh, meaning that trip would last for a sweet time. The estimated arrival was in three hours, so Kris had plenty of time to finish up what she was about to say. She was going to explain Shane that perhaps Yellow wasn't all what Shane thought 'he'was. On the other hand, if Yellow really wasn't a guy, then he sure did a good job hiding the fact, considering how flat-chested and surprisingly dirty he was. Since Kris was not sure about her suspicions, she decided to keep Shane in the dark about it.

The boat ride towards Sinnoh went surprisingly smoothly. Now that everyone was working together and actually getting along, the trip was uneventful; boring, even. It didn't take long for the southernmost tip of Mt. Coronet to be visible. Everyone was quite apathetic, possibly because of the upcoming apocalypse - except for Timmy, who kept wishfully talking about the future that he would have after the world was saved.

And, of course, the ship wasn't without its stowaways. Fernando was hiding in the lifeboat, a classic hideout. He was not going to lose the plates from his sight, and had formulated all kinds of plans in his mind to get them to himself.

"All right, listen up, y'all" Wallace explained. "I don't know if Cyrus has set up anything nasty o something for us at Mt. Coronet, but there should be an entrance to the tunnels somewhere over here… in fact, I think we can see it…"

"Wallace, look!" Steven shouted, sounding almost hysterical when he did so.

Everyone in the vicinity rushed on one side of the ship, and glanced at the horizon. The sea around Sinnoh was getting stormy, the sky was turning dark again and clouds were gathering all around incredibly fast. And then, dozens, if not hundreds of Tentacool rose from the water, starting to gather all around Mt. Coronet and Celio's ship. And among those was also one, big Tentacruel. The reason for this sudden gathering was explained quickly. A dark portal appeared to be hovering mid-air, and out of the portal, Cyrus stepped out, holding the Red Chain in his hands and looking more like a monster than a human. His facial features were mostly the same, but his nose had a grotesque shape and his eyes were almost completely black.

"I'm afraid you can't come here" Cyrus said. "I have been observing your doings, but I haven't had the chance to get close to you until now. I'm giving you the chance to turn back now. I suggest you take it."

"Screw you, you… misanthrope!" Wallace yelled. "Come on, gang, that putz isn't stopping us from doing whatever we were supposed to do. Get on some water Pokémon, and-"

"No, no, no!" Cyrus said softly. "You have chosen the wrong way. I can't let you wander around, jeopardizing my plan and everything. Palkia, rise!"

It seems that the group had completely forgotten that Cyrus was in control of these three dragons. The magnificent and enormous purple-shaded creature emerged from the ocean, ready to attack the group whenever Cyrus told it to do so.

"Time to sink that bucket. Palkia, Spacial Rend!"

Immediately obeying Cyrus' orders, Palkia slashed the air and blasted a pink crescent blade of energy towards Celio's ship. There were no time for evasive maneuvers; Cyrus had Palkia on his side, allowing the attack to move faster than the laws of physics allowed it to. Ripping an enormous hole to the side of the ship, Celio's boat started sinking. Everyone on board ran around in panic, a natural reaction to an attack such as this. While Wallace was originally confused, he decided to keep his cool in front of the crowd. But Palkia wasn't finished yet: its forearms started glowing, and it once again threw another blade of energy at the ship, causing an explosion that ripped part of the ship apart. The lifeboat fell into the sea in two pieces, and Fernando who had barely noticed Cyrus, was quite surprised when he fell into the water, almost drowning. Wallace, on the other hand, decided to keep his cool in front of his people:

"OK, everyone, quickly grab some water-types!" he yelled. "Everyone OK?"

"I don't think so… that monk who never got to say anything is gone…" Kris yelled. "Also, our captain, Celio, is gone, and… Oh my God… where's Timmy?!"

"Oh, there he is!" Shane noticed upon seeing a glimpse of his hair in the water. "And, uh… over there! And over there!"

"Gross!" Dawn shrieked.

"We'll mourn him later!" Wallace said. "Milotic, Sealeo, go!"

Wallace jumped on his Sealeo, while his Milotic got to transport Shane, Brendan, May, Eusine and Morty, who didn't have any water-types. Kris got on her Feraligatr, Lucas on his Gastrodon, Pearl on his Floatzel and Dawn used her Empoleon, while Steven got on his Skarmory in order to fly to safety. The entire group started moving towards Mt. Coronet, while Wallace decided to stay behind.

"Maybe I can hold him off or something!" Wallace said bravely. "Seriously, guys, you can go. Guys?"

Perfectly happy to see someone fighting against Cyrus, the others started moving towards Mt. Coronet. The large waves made advancing relatively hard, and Kris couldn't help but to look behind her to see Wallace, with his Sealeo and Tentacruel, fighting against Palkia, most likely futilely.

With the help from Steven's Skarmory, the group got to climb up to Mt. Coronet and the entrance to the tunnels. After everyone was in the tunnels, Steven returned to help Wallace fight. And soon, in pairs, the group had to stay behind to defend the others from supposedly fatal opponents, mostly Pokémon that Cyrus had manipulated. Morty and Eusine, May and Brendan, Lucas and Pearl… Eventually, only Kris, Shane and Dawn made it to the top of Mt. Coronet. Knowing that they did not have much time, they decided to run, but found it difficult to do in the thick snow. Fortunately, Dawn had a Mamoswine that the group rode with to get to the Spear Pillar, the highest location in all of Sinnoh.

But just near the entrance to Spear Pillar, two Pokémon appeared from behind piles of snow: Abomasnow, large white Pokémon covered in thick fur, with dark green limbs. They could have looked like normal trees from a distance, except for that minor little difference that they were trying to kill passerby people. Dawn's Mamoswine stopped on its tracks, and the group had to think for a moment. The Spear Pillar was just a couple of yards away, even, but the Abomasnow were blocking the way there.

"Get off" Dawn said all of the sudden. "It may sound trite, but I'll hold these off for a moment. I got my big Mamoswine right here, and it'll surely pummel these woodchucks."

"You sure?" Kris asked, glancing at the Abomasnow. "Those things look pretty strong."

"Nah, I'll be fine" Dawn assured. "I'm tired of being the non-practical rich girl! I want to be able to tell the future generations that I was here, saving the world, and-"

"OK, thanks, we're going now, bye!"

Not wanting to hear inspirational speeches right now, Shane and Kris got off Dawn's Mamoswine, which then charged and attacked the Abomasnow, distracting them long enough for Shane and Kris to get into the Spear Pillar.

The place, which looked like a partially collapsed temple, was basically the same, eerie place that it was when Cyrus disappeared from that very spot. But there were some things on the floor that the duo hadn't noticed before: thirteen slots for the plates, color-coded for convenience. In the middle of the ring of slots, there was a small pedestal that had slots for three plates, which were the most important ones: the Draco Plate, the Iron Plate and the Splash Plate. Shane and Kris looked at each other for a second, then divided the plates and started placing them into the slots.

But two of the plates were still missing. Would Lance and Cynthia get there on time?


	46. Gott im Himmel!

**Chapter Forty-six: **_**Gott im Himmel!**_

Everyone were out at Mt. Coronet, battling the various opponents and manipulated Pokémon thrown at their way by Cyrus. Long story short, Cyrus' was basically to purge the world from humans, which would, needless to say, suck. As such, the brave heroes of the Legendary Pokémon Society had to recruit a ragtag group of happy-go-lucky idiots for their quest in order to find a bunch of mystical plates that the group could use to summon Arceus, the God of all Pokémon and the creator of the universe as we know it. Possibly.

Currently, as everyone was fighting, Cyrus observed the situation emotionlessly and not even bothering to fight back, merely letting the brainwashed Pokémon do their work. But he was able to calculate something: two people were missing. It seems that, despite all of Cyrus' obstacles, he failed in stopping someone from getting into the Spear Pillar.

Inside the Spear Pillar, Shane and Kris were sliding the plates into their respective slots. The pedestal in the middle of the circle of slots already had the Splash and Iron Plates in it, but the Draco Plate was missing. Similarly, the circle had just about every plate in it except for the Zap Plate, which still hadn't been found. Even Shrew was helping installing the plates, although it was hard for it to carry them, since the plates were almost as big as the little Pokémon that sweated as it carried the plates around, putting them into their places.

"Say, Kris, about that thing I was about to tell you back at Victory Road…" Shane said abruptly whilst trying to cram the last of his plates into a slot.

"Is this really the right time for this?!" Kris asked angrily as she installed her last plate. "We are in the middle of… did you hear that?"

"What?"

"That distant… wait, no, I stand corrected, _not-so-distant_ rumbling… in fact, that rumbling is getting louder… and the ground is shaking…"

After a moment of pondering, Shane also heard the sound. But he didn't have time to think about it for too long, as it suddenly fell silent. A moment of awkward silence ensued, but the result was predictable.

From underneath the floor of the Spear Pillar, rose an enormous, blue dinosaur-like monster with diamond-hard steel plating all over its body. Dialga crushed the pillars around it and filled up most of the space in the Spear Pillar, forcing Shane, Kris and Shrew to retreat behind another pillar.

"I told you not to interfere in my business…" said Cyrus, who had teleported himself into the Spear Pillar using another portal. "Face it. You will be squashed one at a time, and all this effort will have gone to waste…"

"Shouldn't we fight that guy?" Kris whispered, crouching behind a pillar.

"Are you crazy?" Shane asked. "That's a Dialga! The only thing worse than Dialga is nothing, because there is nothing worse than Dialga. Except two Dialgas…"

"Get a hold of yourself, man, you're rambling!" Kris said and slapped Shane in the face unnecessarily hard. "Sorry about that, but seriously we can take him on. All we need now is some sort of incredibly unlikely thing to help us…"

"Togekiss! Aura Sphere!"

Shane and Kris briefly peeked from behind the Spear Pillar to see Cynthia flying towards the massive Dialga. It managed to turn its head a little, but it had no time to attack when Togekiss launched an Aura Sphere towards it, hurting it just enough to distract it long enough for Cynthia to land and rush to Shane and Kris.

"Sorry for the delay…" Cynthia panted, being quite out of breath after rushing all the way there. "A Cresselia was flying above Sinnoh and causing trouble. What kind of idiot set it loose?"

"Yeah, that sure sounds like an idiot" Shane said innocently. "You got one of the plates?"

"Sure did!" Cynthia said, grabbing a yellow plate from her bag. "The Zap Plate, where do you want me to put it?"

"In the empty slot in that circle" Kris said, pointing at the correct location. "If you can get there before that Dialga crushes you, that is…"

"Too late!" Cyrus announced. "If one dragon is not sufficient enough, then I guess I need to gather the other lads here as well. I'm warning you, you don't want to get these guys mad…"

Waving his Red Chain in the air, Cyrus opened an enormous portal in the middle of the Spear Pillar. Dialga stood aside to make room for its comrades. First, Palkia, dripping enormous amounts of water all over the Spear Pillar, arrived from the portal and stood next to Dialga, roaring horribly. Next, something even more disturbing stepped out of the portal. A massive, probably twenty-five feet tall hellish monster with six legs, six wings and six 'arms', but no apparent face besides its red, beady eyes: Giratina.

Kris, Shane and Cynthia watched in horror, and knew that there was no way they could take on three immensely powerful legendary Pokémon. But help was already on its way. In the distance, a Dragonite was seen flying towards the Spear Pillar, and as it grew closer, it blasted a Dragon Pulse at all three legendary dragons. This barely scratched them, but allowed Dragonite to land safely as well. Lance hopped off his Dragonite and showed the group what he was carrying: the Draco Plate, the final one. In order to keep the legendary dragons busy, Lance ordered his Dragonite to attack them, and Cynthia called out her Garchomp, ordering it to do the same. While the dragons battled on, Lance placed the Draco Plate on the pedestal whilst explaining the situation:

"All right, this pedestal is supposed to hold the Splash Plate, the Iron Plate and the Draco Plate. I don't know why they are so important, but they're supposed to represent emotion, willpower and knowledge, respectively. They're also more powerful than the other plates."

"Can the lectures, Lance!" Kris said. "Cynthia, what do we need to do now? We have all the plates, let's call Arceus and tell it to get medieval on these abominations!"

"Right you are. I have the Azure Flute right here. If the myths are true, what they always are, then playing this flute will activate these plates, which will send a beam towards the sky, into the Hall of Origin, where Arceus will descend upon, then arrive here and kick some ass… hopefully."

"Play it then!"

Cynthia nodded, then slowly grabbed the flute from her bag. The flute didn't look too mysterious at first glance, it looked more like a Poké Flute that was painted white. But before Cynthia could even put the flute on her lips, something incredibly fast jumped down from the platform where Cyrus was standing, grabbed the flute from Cynthia, and rushed to deliver it to Cyrus. It was Cyrus' Weavile, that passed the flute to Cyrus, who gleefully threw it to the depths of the crevice underneath him.

"As I said, you cannot possibly stop me" Cyrus exclaimed. "How hard can it be to understand my vision? A world void of any troubling human emotions… that would be the place I want to be. When I was a kid, back in Sunyshore, I always enjoyed the company of machines better than those disgusting, pathetic humans. The kids in my class were all stupid, promiscuous and phlegmatic, but I was an achiever even then. I wanted to do something no one else had done before. But everyone just laughed at my dreams and no one wanted to join me. No one."

"Oh, boo-hoo, that 'cry for the devil'-shtick is not working for us!" Kris yelled.

"I don't know, I do see him in a more positive and pitiful light right now…" Shane pondered.

"Positive?! You knucklehead, this guy is trying to destroy the world, he has brainwashed hundreds of innocent Pokémon, he killed Charon, that guy we found at Cerulean Cape and those three researchers at Route 224, not to mention the fact that he and his evil corporation have ruined more lives than Disney and Microsoft put together! The guy's a complete monster!"

"Yeah, well, what are you going to do about it, Kris?" Cynthia asked.

"I'll show you what I'm going to do!"

"Wait a tic, we're the Legendary Pokémon Society, and therefore, _we _will take care of the problem!" Lance said arrogantly. "You just scuttle back behind that pillar and let us responsible people take care of the rest!"

"Screw you! You know, I never liked any of you in your weirdo Society!" Kris said, and Shane could clearly see her getting worked up again. "Your methods are suspicious at best , and otherwise you just creep me out. You've got to set your pride aside and let me help you!"

Not bothering to wait for a response, Kris grabbed a Poké Ball from her belt and started marching towards the edge of the Spear Pillar and towards Cyrus and his three monsters that were battling against Cynthia's Garchomp and Lance's Dragonite. Kris sent out her own strongest Pokémon, her Feraligatr, and ordered it to join the fighting. But despite its strength, it was hardly a match for the legendary Pokémon.

"God damn it…" Shane cursed and ran after Kris, deciding to stop her from doing anything stupid, which was usually something that Kris did to Shane. "Come on, Shrew, help me out here!"

Shrew gulped and trembled at the sight of the legendaries, but as it had to remain loyal to its master, it decided to prove that it was not a coward, and followed Shane. The two ran towards Kris, trying to stop her, but she just recklessly walked towards Giratina, as if she was able to stop it. Meanwhile, the Spear Pillar was getting crowded. Wallace, Steven, Morty, Eusine, Dawn, May, Brendan, Lucas and Pearl had all gotten through their respective obstacles and made it to the Spear Pillar to see what was going on, all deciding to send their respective Pokémon to battle against the dragons. But Kris did not notice, as she just kept approaching the dragons while Shane and Shrew tried to catch up to her.

"Well, well, what an excellent target…" Cyrus pondered. "Besides, if I want to make progress, I'll have to get these three dragons… higher…"

Using the power of his Red Chain, Cyrus was able to manipulate the legendary dragons as he saw fit. With just a wave of hand, Cyrus made Dialga, Palkia and Giratina to rise from the ground and float high into the air, leaving the other exhausted Pokémon on the ground. In the air, Dialga, Palkia and Giratina started fighting against each other, using their strongest attacks in hopes of bringing the other one down. Cyrus watched on gleefully, as he knew that the mere fact that these three were fighting would bring the world to the brink of destruction.

"Now then, now to deal with you…" Cyrus said, seeing Shane, Kris and Shrew close to each other in one bunch near the edge of the crevice. "Giratina, Hyper Beam!"

Despite lacking any visible mouth, Giratina was able to blast a powerful, white beam of energy that cut off the ground underneath Shane, Kris and Shrew, plummeting the trio to their doom. No one was fast enough to react, and they could only watch in horror as they kept falling, their lives cut tragically short…

Until Shane realized that he wasn't falling anymore. Clasping Shrew in his arms, Shane noticed that he was sitting on something that flew at the crevice and soared higher and higher. He opened his eyes, seeing Kris sit behind him and none other than Damien Zachowski sitting in front of him. It was Damien's Fearow that swooped Shane, Kris and Shrew into relative safety and was now flying back towards the others.

"Damien?!?"

"Yeah, sorry for coming so late…" Damien said nonchalantly, as if he was just dropping by for a cup of tea. "I know I didn't help you guys looking for the plates and stuff, but I guess this is my way of thanking you for saving my life and stuff."

"Wow, thanks!" Shane said, visibly surprised by this new attitude.

"I thought we were gonners for sure…" Kris panted, watching down on the bottomless crevice. "And… wait a minute… are you sure you did this for us?"

"Of course not!" Damien said, telling his Fearow to change directions and land. "I only did it so everyone would think I was the hero and in order to take the credit for saving the world and stuff!"

"You asshole, let us down!" Shane yelled. "I knew you only saved us for selfish reasons! But, you still saved us, so… thanks again, I guess…"

Cyrus, outraged by this unrealistic turn of events, looked back to the sky. The weather was getting worse by the minute, with strong wind and thunderstorms occurring all over Sinnoh, with dark clouds above the sky all over the world. The apocalyptic battle between Dialga, Palkia and Giratina would eventually destroy the world as everyone knew it.

But Cynthia was not shocked. Now that Cyrus was distracted, she grabbed something from her bag: the _real_ Azure Flute. The actual Azure Flute was purple and looked more like an ocarina than anything else. It seemed that the flute thrown away by Cyrus was actually just a Poké Flute painted white to distract Cyrus. Happy to see Shane, Kris, Shrew and Damien landing safely, Cynthia ordered everyone to stay put as she started playing.

The Azure Flute then played a wonderful, celestial tune that calmed everyone hearing it. Cyrus looked on, confused as to what to do, while the three dragons still battled on. All of the thirteen plates in the circle started glowing, and then, the entire pedestal in the middle glowed as well. The Draco Plate, the Iron Plate and the Splash Plate blasted a powerful beam of light towards the sky, and soon the entire Spear Pillar bathed in bright, golden light. Something, like a huge, celestial hall opened at the sky, and then something came down. A Pokémon that could not be described, glowing so brightly that it was difficult to see it.

But Shane never left home without his binoculars, and as everyone watched in awe, Shane wanted to catch a glimpse of The Original One, the Pokémon that supposedly had created the universe. It was hard to see because of all the glowing, but Shane could see a form of a horse of some kind, like a Qilin or a Centaur. The golden cross-like wheel on its back glowed in all different colors in succession, as did its eyes and its hooves. As everyone was concentrated on watching something that seemed to be Arceus, they did not notice that one by one, all of the plates they had gathered simply disappeared, only boosting up Arceus' power.

As the God of all Pokémon descended towards the Spear Pillar, even Dialga, Palkia and Giratina ceased fighting. Cyrus looked on desperately as the Pokémon he dedicated his life capturing simply faded away and returned into the portal, back to the Distortion World. Cyrus was rendered a helpless man, but he still had his ace in the hole: the Master Ball. If he would capture the most powerful Pokémon on the face of the Earth, he would easily submit the world under his rule, and his plan would have not gone to waste. Cyrus waited until the golden glow got close enough, then chucked the Master Ball towards Arceus' direction.

It did not take long for Arceus to react. It formed an orange orb of energy that appeared above its head, then launched it into the sky, leaving orange streaks of light as it flew higher. Mid-air, the orb exploded magnificently. The explosion formed various pink meteors that rained down on the Spear Pillar. Everyone ducked down and took cover, but it was unnecessary. The Judgment attack was aimed at only person: Cyrus. In horror, he watched as the pink meteors cast him down, causing him to plummet into the crevice below, screaming horribly as he fell down. The threat was over, and Shane decided to complete his dream, and took a photo of Arceus without anyone noticing.

Then, without further ado, Arceus and the golden light around it returned to the sky, to the Hall of Origin where it came from. Just as quickly as it had arrived, it disappeared, and everything was back to normal.

The young crowd, primarily Shane, Kris, Dawn, May, Brendan, Lucas, Pearl and Eusine, rejoiced and cheered, letting out all the tension built up in them. The world was saved, but more importantly, it was saved thanks to them, and they couldn't wait to read about it in tomorrow's papers, watch their interviews on TV and receive the Nobel Peace Prize, which would probably be good enough to compensate for what they went through, according to Shane. No one took that seriously, but they nevertheless believed that they would become heroes.

Unfortunately, this belief was incorrect. Lance, Cynthia, Wallace, Steven and Morty all put on their sunglasses and took out small, pen-like devices from their pockets. They ordered Shane, Kris, Eusine, Dawn, May, Brendan, Lucas and Pearl to stand in a line, lying that they would 'take a picture of them'. But in reality, these things were like the Neuralyzers from Men in Black. A click of a button and one bright, flash of light later, everyone had forgotten about the incident. The youngsters merely stood still and looked into the distance with their memories erased, not having any recollection of the Arceus incident.

"Sorry about this, but it's Mr. Gent's orders" Lance said. "Thanks for participating in this simulation, everyone. The problem related to Cyrus was extinguished quickly and easily, and there were no legendary Pokémon or massive battles involved. Shane, Mr. Gent said that you can't join the Legendary Society. Tough break, but seriously, you're an idiot. What did you expect? Eusine, you're fired. Or, scratch that. You were never in our organization, you tried to get in but we never let you into our club. Now, let's get you back home…"

Still woozy from the effects of the Neuralyzers, the group had to be escorted by the Legendary Society members. They had to walk all the way back to the south entrance to Mt. Coronet, where the remnants of Celio's ship were still visible, but it wouldn't take long for Mr. Briney to arrive on his new ship that would take the group to their destinations. But the Society watched on as someone was crawling from the water and towards the Society, exhausted, hurt but still eager to get the plates to himself.

"You will… feel the wrath… of the great Fernando…" Fernando panted as he crawled towards the Society members. "…and I shall get the plates… and sell them… and be rich… oh, who am I kidding… someone give me water, at least…"

Lance sighed, then flashed the Neuralyzer to wipe out Fernando's memories as well. _Now_ everything was back to normal.

And it looked like this was the end…


	47. or was it?

**Chapter Forty-seven: **_**…or was it?**_

According to the official statement released by Professor Oak and Bill, there were exactly 492 Pokémon species in the world, counting the extinct Pokémon and the legendary Pokémon, as their existence had already been confirmed. And the people bought this. The only ones who knew about the mysterious last Pokémon were the Legendary Society and Silver, and no one was going to tell. The Legendary Society continued their usual activities, Morty returning to his gym, but still hoping that the phoenix of rainbow colors would return to Ecruteak. Steven Stone decided to take a long vacation, still unwilling to take over the family business despite his father's wishes. Wallace was still the Hoenn Champion, the Head Coordinator and all-in-all, a well-respected and famous individual who would inspire numerous coordinators for years. The mysterious Guide/Elder Gent disappeared again, but this was nothing new, and no one even questioned that. While the original Wise Trio was long gone, a trio of Ecruteak City monks were more than happy to become the new Wise Trio. As long as they did a good job, no one argued.

But the most important members shouldn't be forgotten…

Far away in the north, in the middle of the mountains and the forests were the Sinjoh Ruins, ancient ruins somehow connected to the Ruins of Alph. Only one person really had knowledge about the place, an old man who lived there and watched over the ruins. Over the years, however, two other individuals learned about the place…

A peaceful day at the Sinjoh Ruins was interrupted when a Togekiss flew to the ruins from the east, soon followed by a Dragonite that came from the west. Their respective trainers hopped down and prepared to investigate the ruins, recalling their Pokémon, as they couldn't fit inside anyway.

"Here it is, just like I promised" Cynthia said.

"You were right about this place…" Lance said as he glanced the mystical ruins. "I can already feel their presence. Shall we step in? Ladies first, after all…"

Cynthia smiled and entered the ruins, followed by Lance.

But the younger generation of trainers didn't do so bad either. Silver and Giovanni had disappeared from the public eye, as they withdrew into training, apparently. Dawn continued her coordinating while Lucas was focused on his training. Their destination was the Fiore region, where they decided to go with Pearl. Of course, Pearl and Dawn still argued and Lucas couldn't really express his feelings towards Dawn, but they tried to get along, and that's what counted. Lord only knows what happened to Leaf, but hopefully she managed to succeed in her research…

Eusine never got over his confrontation with Suicune, and despite the attempts made by others, he hadn't learned a thing from his experience. His memory was altered so that he would believe that he resigned from the Legendary Society, although he could never say how. Because Morty refused to keep contact with him, Eusine continued being a loner, albeit a rich one. He continued driving around the world, chasing after Suicune in hopes of confronting it again some day.

May and Brendan, however, did fine for themselves. They had their own plans, but they were going to complete them together. For now, they remained in Hoenn, May tutoring new coordinators and Brendan entering the Battle Frontier. Both kept in contact with Lucas, Pearl and Dawn, May and Dawn having a sort of a friendly rivalry.

Damien Zachowski hadn't changed a bit: he still had a massive ego and an unfriendly persona. He was interviewed by DJ Mary, and during the interview, Damien mentioned that he was going to travel around the world for a while, then he would settle to become the gym leader of Viridian City, since the previous gym leader, Blue, was apparently heading towards early retirement.

Of course, an epilogue wouldn't be complete without mentioning Fernando. He did just fine for himself, apparently. Even though he contemplated on settling down, he decided against it, preferring to go his own way. But he was no longer a member of Team Rocket, and he was going to form his own team, and for once, he was going to do some good, to change the world. Or, at least, he wanted to do so. He disappeared from Kanto shortly after his memory was erased, and his destination was unknown.

Shane and Kris remained quite unaware of these events, however. They both returned home at first, but neither of them could stay home for long. Shane decided to be a man for the first time ever, and left his home for good. While he had conveniently forgotten everything Arceus-related, he still remembered that Kris said she was going to head towards the Orre region next. Without further ado, Shane left all his Pokémon save for Shrew to Ferguson's care, then decided to head to Route 22, which would then lead to the long road leading to Orre. And, surprisingly enough, Shane was lucky enough to catch Kris before she left.

"Kris! Wait!"

"Hold it right there!" Kris said and stopped Shane on his tracks. "You have already said what needs to be said. I like you too… but as a friend! And don't get any kind of funny ideas, OK? I don't see myself traveling with anyone else, so… you can join me."

"Yes! The Stephens boy has scored again!"

Shane and Kris started their long, long hike towards Orre, as they would think of a better means of transportation later. Right now, they didn't have any money or any style, but their willpower alone made up for that.

"Oh yeah!" Shane announced. "See you in Orre, bi-"

"Stop saying that, it has gotten so old already!" Kris said.

"But I have to say it, I can't just abandon the gag!"

"Don't make me push you into that pot hole! I'm warning you! Don't say it!"

Shane and Kris continued this bickering as they faded from view, starting their next voyage after having forgotten the conclusion of their last one. But many mysteries remained unanswered. What was the real case behind the Legendary Society? Where did Pokémon come from? Was Arceus really the creator of the universe or just an immensely powerful Pokémon? Who were the real bad guys and what were their real plans? Why did Shane keep lying about his name? Who was Yellow anyway? What were Cynthia and Lance up to? Why this story did so much grammatical errors and spelinng msitakes have?

All those questions would be answered… in the sequel, of course.

**ENDUT! HOCH HECH!**

***

A/N: _I knew I said I wasn't supposed to write anymore Author's Notes, but I lied. I do that a lot. Anyway, it's over now, but the sequel is in works and I'm posting the first chapter very, very soon. Maybe today, maybe tomorrow. Thanks for reading, everyone. I'd like to take this moment and thank Lopunnu, who has reviewed EVERY SINGLE CHAPTER of my story. Thank you so, so much! _


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